Principles of Economics ECON1008
Applied Writing Assignment (Part 1)
Semester 1, 2019
1. This assignment is due on week 5 Thursday 28th March 2019 (11.55 am).
2. It is worth 10% of your overall assessment.
3. ALL assignments need to be submitted via TURNITIN.
4. The word limit is 500 words.
5. You will be required to support your arguments with information from a range of sources. Failure to cite properly is evidence of academic misconduct and will result in marks being deducted. You can access guides and information about referencing from the following link:
http://www.unisa.edu.au/ltu/students/study/referencing/harvard.pdf
6. Extensions to assignment submission dates are not granted for some courses. Any arrangements in place for extensions will be indicated by the Course Coordinator or Lecturer. Requests closer to the submission date need to be negotiated with the Course Coordinator, and will require at minimum, a medical certificate or other documentation regarding your reason for seeking an extension.
7. NO late assignments are allowed.
8. Assignments and feedback will be returned to you within two weeks of you submitting your assignment.
Instructions:
1. You will need to answer each question individually and not in a whole essay.
2. You will need to include well-labelled diagram/s in your answers.
3. Please remember to include a reference list in your essay. Failure to do so will result in possible plagiarism.
Lemon shortage and high demand for fresh fruit sends prices skyrocketing
ABC Rural
By Jessica Schremmer 11 January 2019 at 5:56 am
Summertime means seafood and cocktails with fresh lemon for many across Australia, but prices for the fruit have skyrocketed.
A shortage of Australian-grown lemons has caused supplies to fall and prices to spike.
The normal retail price is about $3.99 to $4.99 per kilo but as most lemons currently have to be imported, the fruit is selling for as much as $8.99 per kilo on supermarket shelves.
Citrus Australia chairman Ben Cant said the market was known to tighten during summer but the weak Australian dollar was also contributing to soaring prices.
-In the Christmas period we run predominately on imports,- Mr Cant said.
-A large degree of the fruit this year has been brought in from the United States and it's a higher procurement cost for the importers.
-In the past, they brought in a higher degree of Spanish and Egyptian lemons, which has been cheaper, but they've had some quality issues, with mouldy fruit in the boxes.
-So I think that from my discussions, the safe bet is to buy the US fruits, spend a bit more money and get a good product.-
Extreme heat reduces Australia's production volumes
Sunlands citrus grower Mark Doecke in South Australia's Riverland said the lemon shortage was simply a problem of supply and last year's extreme heat affecting the fruit.
-Lemon sales have grown a little bit, there is a bit of extra demand, but supply is the problem,- Mr Doecke said.
-We are in a minor picking time, and last year in February-March, when the fruit should have set, what we would be picking now, they didn't set well.-
He said the extreme heat last February was one of the major causes for the fruit not to set, resulting in less fruit produced.
-Consequently, we have a very short supply of lemons at the moment and that's why the prices are high in the supermarket,- Mr Doecke said.
He said most lemons in South Australia were picked in July and August but they picked up to five times a year, including at minor picking times.
Mr Cant said lemon consumption was increasing and traditionally, Christmas was a high-demand period.
-Unfortunately this is just the time of the year, due to mother nature, where we can't produce enough lemons,- he said.
-Lemon trees yield most of their crop in winter, so high availability is through March to October.-
Prices expected to fall, more trees being planted
Marketing and business development manager for SA Produce Market Nadia Boscaini said they were currently selling lemons from the Adelaide Hills but were expecting to see prices fall when ample supplies from Queensland came onto the market.
Mr Cant said Queensland lemon growers would start picking in February and once the fruit came onto the market, prices were expected to drop immediately.
And with lemon consumption increasing, so is production across Australia.
Mr Doecke said across the southern growing region in the past three years farmers had seen about a 30 per cent increase in the area planted with lemon trees.
-There are a lot of lemons that have gone in so as they come into production, supply will meet demand in the future,- he said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2019-01-11/lemon-shortage-high-demand-sends-pricessoaring/10706012
Please read the article attached and answer the questions:
1. Using demand and supply model and assuming that lemons are sold in a perfectly competitive market, explain the reasons for the price of lemon to skyrocket. Please make
sure you clearly explain the equilibrating process. [5 marks]
2. Clearly explain and illustrate the impact of the increase in price of lemon on a substitute good for lemon. In your discussion provide an example and explain the equilibrating process
and the impact on market equilibrium price and quantity of the substitute good. [5 marks]
Your assignment will also be assessed on how effective you can communicate with the reader, i.e. how well you have presented your arguments and ensured your analysis is logical and consistent. Consequently, 2 marks will be awarded for effective writing including proper grammar, referencing and formatting. Importantly, make sure you use appropriate diagrams in your analysis.
Presentation and referencing: 2 marks
TOTAL MARKS for this part of the assignment: 12 marks
Please use the following checklist to make sure you have done your assignment correctly.
Checklist:
1. Provided clear definition of key economic terms.
2. Included well-drawn diagram/s (where appropriate) that are clearly labelled (both axis and curve/s) for each question.
3. Discussion and explanation of diagram is included in the answer.
4. Answers provided are related to the topics that have been taught in ECON1008 course.
5. Questions are answered individually and NOT in an essay form.
6. Within the 500 word limit (+/- 10%). [NB: Anything 450 words would mean that you have not provided clear/detailed explanation of the concepts].
7. Check spelling and sentence structure.
8. In-text referencing.
9. Referencing list