Can MR be negative? Explain with the help of example.?
Hmm.Here, i think MR means Marginal Revenue, than for that i am sure that Marginal Revenue can be negative in monopoly market competition but here don't be Confused with Average Revenue ,AV can't be negative. So, here is example, TR : 100,130,150,150,145MR: -, 30, 20,0,-5AV : 100,65,50,37.5,29In the above example it is clear now that at last unit MR is negative.but even though at any point AV is not negative
Can MR be negative? Explain with the help of example.?
Can MR be negative?
Introduction:
In economics, MR stands for Marginal Revenue, which refers to the additional revenue obtained from selling one more unit of a product. Marginal Revenue is typically positive, but under certain circumstances, it can be negative. This can occur when the demand for a product is elastic and a firm lowers its prices to increase sales volume.
Explanation:
When the demand for a product is elastic, it means that consumers are highly responsive to changes in price. In such cases, a decrease in price can lead to a significant increase in the quantity demanded. As a result, the total revenue of the firm may increase even though the price per unit has decreased. Consequently, the marginal revenue may become negative.
Example:
Let's consider the example of a smartphone manufacturer. Suppose the current price of their smartphones is $500, and at this price, they sell 1,000 units per month, resulting in a total revenue of $500,000 (Price * Quantity). The marginal revenue for each unit sold is equal to the price of the product, which is $500.
Now, due to intense competition and the availability of alternative products, the demand for smartphones becomes highly elastic. The smartphone manufacturer decides to lower the price to $400 per unit to attract more customers and increase sales volume. As a result, the quantity demanded increases to 2,500 units per month.
However, with the decrease in price, the total revenue for the manufacturer is now $400 * 2,500 = $1,000,000. The additional revenue obtained from selling the extra 1,500 units is $500,000 ($1,000,000 - $500,000). Therefore, the marginal revenue for each additional unit sold is negative (-$333.33).
Conclusion:
In conclusion, while marginal revenue is typically positive, it can become negative when a firm lowers its prices to increase sales volume in response to highly elastic demand. This situation occurs when the additional revenue generated from selling more units outweighs the decrease in price per unit. Understanding the concept of marginal revenue is crucial for firms to make informed pricing and production decisions.
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