Tag: High School Economics
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What HBC’s 355-Year Journey Reveals about Opportunity Cost
Recent news about the end of the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) emphasizes financial and related numbers: HBC lost about $330 million during the last 12 months; it owes at least $1 billion; 9,300 employees plus contractors will lose their jobs (income, benefits, …); 74 stores and 40 million sq. ft. of retail space will become…
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Why All-You-Can-Eat Restaurants Survive and Thrive: Economic Insights
An all-you-can-eat restaurant seems like an obvious exception to the rules of basic economic logic, until you dig beneath the surface.
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Navigating Tariff Uncertainty using Inventories
People in Canada are thinking about the tariffs, retaliatory tariffs, reciprocal tariffs and threats of more from the US. There was a time before and, eventually, markets will adjust to the time after. The challenge is to manage the time in between. The media focus on layoffs and, until other buyers can be found, production…
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Economic Lessons Hidden in Popular Movies
The Oscars® are handed out on March 2, and, in many Canadian provinces, Spring Break for high school students is soon after. So, now is a good time to remember that some movies present important economic ideas entertainingly. Most movies do a bad job of conveying economic ideas precisely.
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Thinking Strategically while Getting Punched in the Mouth
Canada, and other countries, were just punched in the mouth by the threat of tariffs imposed by the US. When faced with a problem, some people propose a “plan” to fix it but a plan is not a strategy. Strategizing is hard work. Some memorable quotes offer memorable advice.
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What are the Effects of Tariffs on a Nation’s Wealth?
This old question has been given new life by the inauguration of Donald Trump as President of the United States of America. Using tariffs to “fix” a trade deficit is seductively appealing but, like other zombie ideas, it relies on a misunderstanding. In this case, it ignores two basic principles of economics: opportunity cost and…
5 Basic Principles of Economics 