Economics: Made Simple, 14th Edition covers all the basic aspects of the economic organization of free-enterprise societies, with special reference to Great Britain's position in the European Community. The book tackles the production, distribution, and exchange of goods and services, both within a country and internationally. The text also discusses the basic ideas on production; the factors, scale, and location of production; and the types of business units. The theory of price determination, the money system, the importance of the distribution theory, and the theory of international trade are also discussed. The book describes macroeconomics and the problems associated with it; national income; the development of economic theory; and money, monetary policy, and monetarism. The part played by governments in controlling abuses, promoting social progress, and managing prosperity and the historical development of Economics are considered as well. Students reading books on Economics as a liberal study and practicing economists will find the book useful.

Preface Section 1: Introduction
1 Some Basic Ideas
1.1 What is Economics?
1.2 'Wants' and 'Utilities'
1.3 The Production of Utilities
1.4 The Factors of Production
1.5 The Organization of Production
1.6 Consumption and Production
1.7 Scarcity and Choice
1.8 Cost and Opportunity Cost
1.9 'Free' Economies, 'Controlled' Economies and 'Mixed' Economies
1.10 Summary of Chapter 1
Exercises Set 1
Section 2: Production
2 Basic Ideas on Production
2.1 What Does an Economist Understand by 'Production'?
2.2 The Three Classes of Production
2.3 Direct Production and Indirect Production
2.4 Specialization and the Division of Labor
2.5 The Disadvantages of Specialization
2.6 Limitations to the Division of Labor
2.7 Production and Welfare
2.8 The Pattern of Production in an Advanced Economy
2.9 Summary of Chapter 2
Exercises Set 2
3 The Factors of Production
3.1 Introduction
3.2 The Factors of Production-Land
3.3 The Factors of Production-Labor
3.4 The Factors of Production-Capital
3.5 Is the Entrepreneur a Factor of Production?
3.6 Combining the Factors of Production
3.7 The Environmental Closed Cycle of Production
3.8 Summary of Chapter 3
Exercises Set 3
4 The Types of Business Unit
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Types of Business Unit
4.3 Sole-trader Enterprises
4.4 Partnerships
4.5 Limited Partnerships
4.6 The Private Limited Company and the Public Limited Company
4.7 Non-profitmaking Units
4.8 The Public-enterprise Sector of the Economy
4.9 Summary of Chapter 4
Exercises Set 4
5 The Scale of Production
5.1 The Plant, the Firm and the Industry
5.2 Size of Production Units
5.3 Economies of Scale
5.4 Diseconomies of Scale
5.5 The Optimum Firm
5.6 Small-scale Business Units
5.7 The Advantages and Disdavantages of Small-scale Production
5.8 Combination of BusinesVs Units
5.9 Returns to Scale
5.1 Summary of Chapter 5
Exercises Set 5
6 The Location of Production
6.1 The Theory of Location
6.2 Causes of Location
6.3 Industrial Inertia
6.4 The Drift to the South-east in Great Britain
6.5 Localization of Production
6.6 Summary of Chapter 6
Exercises Set 6
Section 3: The Theory of Price Determination
7 Basic Ideas of Demand
7.1 Definition of Demand
7.2 The Conditions of Demand
7.3 A Personal Demand Schedule
7.4 A Composite Demand Schedule
7.5 The General Demand Curve
7.6 Extensions and Contractions of Demand
7.7 Regressive Demand Curves
7.8 Choosing a 'Basket of Goods'-Marginal Utility as the Basis of Demand
7.9 Summary of Chapter 7
Exercises Set 7
8 Basic Ideas of Supply
8.1 Definition of Supply
8.2 Factors Affecting Supply
8.3 Individual Supply Schedules
8.4 A Composite Supply Schedule
8.5 A General Supply Curve
8.6 Extensions, Contractions, and Changes in Supply
8.7 Regressive Supply Curves
8.8 Deciding to Supply-Marginal Cost and Marginal Revenue as the Basis of the Firm's Output
8.9 Summary of Chapter 8
Exercises Set 8
9 How Price is Decided in Perfect Markets
9.1 Equilibrium in the Markets
9.2 Demand and Supply Schedules in Equilibrium
9.3 Diagrammatic Presentation of Equilibrium Price
9.4 Changes in Price under the Influence of Changes in Demand and Supply
9.5 The Demand Curve for the Firm and for the Industry
9.6 The Effect of Price on Firms in Competitive Industries
9.7 When Will a Firm with Specific Assets Leave the Industry?
9.8 Summary of the 'Laws' of Demand and Supply
9.9 Summary of Chapter 9
Exercises Set 9
10 Elasticity of Demand and Supply
10.1 Definition of Elasticity
10.2 The Price Elasticity of Demand
10.3 Five Typical Cases of Price Elasticity of Demand
10.4 Total Revenue and the Elasticity of Demand
10.5 What Determines the Elasticity of Demand?
10.6 The Importance of Elasticity of Demand
10.7 Income Elasticity of Demand
10.8 Cross Elasticity of Demand
10.9 The Price Elasticity of Supply
10.10 Price Fluctuations and Price Elasticity of Demand and Supply
10.11 Summary of Chapter 10
Exercises Set 10
11 Competitive Markets-The Institutions Where Price is Decided
11.1 Definition
11.2 Competitive Markets in Great Britain
11.3 Methods of Dealing
11.4 Specialists who Promote Perfection in the Markets
11.5 Speculators and the Commodity Markets
11.6 'Spot' Markets and 'Futures' Markets
11.7 Hedges-Shelter from the Bitter Economic Winds
11.8 The Economic Status of Speculation
11.9 OPEC and Similar Groupings
11.10 Summary of Chapter 11
Exercises Set 11
12 Monopoly, Oligopoly and Monopolistic Competition
12.1 What is Monopoly?
12.2 Monopolists are Subject to the Authority of the Consumer
12.3 The Demand Curve and the Marginal-revenue Curve of a Monopolist
12.4 Where will a Monopolist Cease Production and hence Determine Price?
12.5 The Monopolist and the Elasticity of Demand
12.6 What is Oligopoly?
12.7 Oligopoly and the Kinked Demand Curve
12.8 What is Monopolistic Competition?
12.9 The Characteristics of Monopolistic Competition
12.10 Determination of Prices under Monopolistic Competition
12.11 Conclusions about Monopolistic Competition
12.12 Summary of Chapter 12
Exercises Set 12
13 Further Aspects of Demand and Supply
13.1 Introduction
13.2 Interrelated Demands
13.3 Interrelated Supply
13.4 The Revealed Preference Theory
13.5 The Theory of Choice-Indifference-curve Analysis
13.6 Price Controls
13.7 Market Price and Normal Price
13.8 Supply Curves
13.9 Discriminating Monopoly
13.10 Summary of Chapter 13
Exercises Set 13
Section 4: Exchanging the Fruits of Production
14 Exchange and Money
14.1 Specialization and Exchange
14.2 Exchange by Barter
14.3 The Functions of Money
14.4 Exchanging Surpluses through the Money System
14.5 The Characteristics of Money
14.6 Types of Money
14.7 Convertible Currencies
14.8 The Value of Money
14.9 An Index of Prices
14.10 Summary of Chapter 14
Exercises Set 14
15 The Distribution of Wealth-Rewards to Factors
15.1 The Importance of Distribution Theory
15.2 David Ricardo
15.3 John Stuart Mill
15.4 Rewards to Factors
15.5 The Market for Factors
15.6 The Demand for Factors-a Derived Demand
15.7 The Marginal Productivity Theory of Factor Prices-the Demand Side
15.8 The Marginal Productivity Theory of Factor Prices-the Supply Side
15.9 Criticisms of the Marginal Productivity Theory
15.10 The Rewards to Factors-Definitions
15.11 Economic Rent-How the Idea Started
15.12 Rents, Quasi-Rent, and Elasticity of Supply
15.13 Are Rents Price-determining or Price-determined?
15.14 Summary of Chapter 15
Exercises Set 15
16 Rewards to Factors-Rent
16.1 Rent-the Reward to Land
16.2 The Demand for Land
16.3 The Supply of Land
16.4 The Price of Land
16.5 Elasticity of Supply of Land-Rent of Situation
16.6 Office Rents in the United Kingdom
16.7 Summary of Chapter 16
Exercises Set 16
17 Rewards to Factors-Wages
17.1 Wages-the Reward to Labor
17.2 Wage-rates and Earnings
17.3 Money Wages and Real Wages
17.4 Early Theories about Wages
17.5 The Marginal Productivity Theory of Wages
17.6 The Bargaining Theory of Wages
17.7 'Economic Rent' and Wages
17.8 Wage Drift
17.9 Equal Pay Legislation
17.10 Summary of Chapter 17
Exercises Set 17
18 Rewards to Factors-Interest
18.1 Interest-the Reward to Capital
18.2 Collecting Capital-the Institutional Investor
18.3 The Supply of Loanable Funds
18.4 The Demand for Loanable Funds
18.5 The Rate of Interest
18.6 The Loanable Funds Theory of Interest
18.7 Summary of Chapter 18
Exercises Set 18
19 Profit-The Reward for Bearing Uncertainty
19.1 Uncertainty
19.2 The Risks of Business
19.3 The Reward for Bearing Uncertainty
19.4 Elements of Profit
19.5 The Functions of Profit in a Free-enterprise System
19.6 Abuse of the Profit System
19.7 Summary of Chapter 19
Exercises Set 19
20 The Financial Institutions
20.1 Introduction
20.2 The Bank of England
20.3 The Money Market
20.4 Commercial Banks
20.5 Merchant Banks
20.6 Discount Houses
20.7 The Foreign-exchange Market
20.8 The Capital Market
20.9 The Stock Exchange
20.10 Summary of Chapter 20
Exercises Set 20
Section 5: The Theory of International Trade
21 International Trade
21.1 Why Trade with Foreign Countries?
21.2 The Principle of Comparative Advantage
21.3 The Idea of Alternative Costs
21.4 The Law of Comparative Costs
21.5 An Example of Specialization in International Trade
21.6 Reasons why Nations never Specialize Completely
21.7 The Terms of Trade
21.8 The Volume of World Trade
21.9 Summary of Chapter 21
Exercises Set 21
22 The Balance of Payments
22.1 Introduction
22.2 Paying for Imports
22.3 UK Balance of Payments
22.4 The Balance of Visible Trade
22.5 The Balance of Invisible Trade
22.6 Capital Items
22.7 A Disequilibrium in the Balance of Payments
22.8 Summary of Chapter 22
Exercises Set 22
23 The Balance of Payments and the Exchange Rate Mechanism
23.1 Introduction
23.2 Curing a Disequilibrium on the Balance of Payments
23.3 Solving the Weakness of a Currency
23.4 Elasticities and the Devaluation of a Currency
23.5 The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
23.6 Summary of Chapter 23
Exercises Set 23
24 The Free-Trade Areas
24.1 Limited Free Trade
24.2 Bilateral and Multilateral Trade
24.3 The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
24.4 The General Pattern of Free-Trade Areas
24.5 The Sterling Area
24.6 The European Community (EC)
24.7 The European Free Trade Area (EFTA)
24.8 'Trade-Diverting' Effects of Free-trade Areas
24.9 Summary of Chapter 24
Exercises Set 24
Section 6: Macroeconomics
25 What is Macroeconomics?
25.1 Introduction
25.2 The Problems of Macroeconomics
Exercises Set 25 (Revision Questions on Microeconomics)
26 The National Income
26.1 Definition
26.2 Why Measure the National Income?
26.3 Factors Affecting the Size of a Nation's Income
26.4 National Income Statistics
26.5 Using Total Expenditure for Calculating National Income
26.6 Using Factor Incomes for Calculating National Income
26.7 Using the National Output for Calculating National Income
26.8 Difficulties in Calculating National Income
26.9 Uses and Limitations of National Income Statistics
26.10 Summary of Chapter 26
Exercises Set 26
27 The Development of Economic Theory
27.1 Theory and Practice
27.2 Mercantilism
27.3 Classical Economics
27.4 Introduction to Keynesian Economics
27.5 Keynes and the Rate of Interest
27.6 The National Income Equilibrium Diagram
27.7 Flows of Money Round the Economy
27.8 Managing Prosperity-the Nature of the Problem
27.9 Summary of Chapter 27
Exercises Set 27
28 Money, Monetary Policy and Monetarism
28.1 Changing Concepts of the Importance of Money
28.2 The Money Supply
28.3 Monetary Policy 1945-70
28.4 Monetary Policy 1971-90
28.5 Monetarism and Monetarist Policy to Cure Inflation
28.6 Supply-side Economics
28.7 Controlling the Monetary Sector of the Economy
28.8 Conclusions about Monetarist Policies
28.9 Summary of Chapter 28
Exercises Set 28
29 Public Finance
29.1 The Public Sector of the Economy
29.2 Adam Smith's Canons of Taxation
29.3 Tax Structure of the UK
29.4 The Budget as an Instrument of Economic Management
29.5 The National Debt
29.6 The Incidence of Taxation
29.7 Summary of Chapter 29
Exercises Set 29
30 The Future of Economics
30.1 The Greeks had a Word for it
30.2 A Liberal Study
30.3 No Longer a Dismal Science
Index