ECON7110 Consumer and Firm Behaviour Company Analysis Assignment Due Date: 03 June 2022. Assignment Weight: 40% The purpose of this INDIVIDUAL report is to analyse a company. For large companies that operate in multiple industries you should focus on a single market that the company is operating in. You should use the concepts and tools learned in the course to successfully complete this task. The assessment must be submitted in pdf format via the Turn-it-in folder on the course Blackboard site. The report should be organized in a coherent manner and must have a title, an abstract (max. 200 words), a short introduction, main analysis and a short conclusion. The essay is limited to 3,000 words (excluding references, figures). In the introduction you should define the specific market that you are analysing (e.g. WestBank in the Australian home loan market) and justify why chose to define the market so narrowly/broadly. In the main analysis you need to answer the following questions: What is the market structure of the industry that the firm is operating in How many firms are there in the market Are there any barriers to entry Do competition authorities regulate this market Have there been reports of anti-competitive behaviour by any firm in the industry What is the cost structure of the company What are the main factors of production Are there economies of scale and scope Does the firm use price discrimination methods How can consumers’ preferences can be characterised for this market What is the price elasticity of this good relative to other general goods How intensive is the usage of advertising What form of advertising is used by this company How is the firm, and more generally, the industry is integrated with other industries What are the general equilibrium effects of the firm’s decisions You should discuss other important questions in your essay if they are crucial to the understanding of the firm. In your analysis you should make use of quantitative data (costs, market share, profitability, advertising expenditure etc.) in answering the above questions. Usage of graphs and tables is highly appreciated.
