The Economist

Read the Wall Street Journal, The Economist, or any other major newspaper or weekly publication and select a single article or articles that (1) either report on interesting economic news that can be analyzed by the concepts or models taught in this course or (2) discusses one or more economic issues related to the concepts or models taught in this course. It is OK to use an online economics news article.

Write a four page (1000 to 1200 words) essay analyzing the topic or critique the article from economic perspectives. Essay must be typed and double-spaced, (Times New Roman, font 12). The questions that you may address in this essay may include, but are not limited, to the followings:

  • Summarize the article(s) you read in 1-2 paragraphs.
  • What is the main economic issue?
  • How is the economic issue related to the concepts or models that you have learned from this course?
  • What sorts of arguments/opinions have been discussed?
  • Do you agree or disagree with the analyses/opinions? Why?
  • What argument would you, as an economist, make?
  • What ideas and/or facts you find interesting?

The following is a suggested list of topics. This list is not exhaustive. INDUSTRY STUDY. For a specific industry, choose a current issue such as deregulation, foreign competition, and the impact of new technologies, mergers/takeovers, changing methods of competition, labor problems, or financial changes.
COMPANY STUDY. Study the recent growth or decline of a particular company or its current position. This topic might include such points as the market structure within which the company grew and now operates, the elasticity of demand for its products, the degree of unionization, the cost structure (degree of fixed cost, economies of scale), the role of advertising, the degree of international competition, etc.

Useful Links: