Course Introduction
PRINCIPLES OF
ECONOMICS
ECON F211
Dr. Rahul Arora (IC)
Assistant Professor,
Department of Economics & Finance,
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
rahul.arora@Pilani.bits-Pilani.ac.in
Mob: +91 – 7607481292
Background design is taken from the presentation slides of Salvatore:
International Economics, 10th Edition © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Why this course ?
To introduce the fundamental concepts and tools
available in economics
Concept and tools necessary to acquire an
understanding of economic decision making of
market participants such as Individual households,
firms, and the government
To lay foundation to study advanced
concepts/courses in Economics & Finance
2
Learning Goals
To understand economics as a subject
To understand the economic decision making of
consumers and producers, and their quantification
To understand various market structures and the
behavior of various economic agents
To understand the basics of National Income
accounting, role of money, and related concepts
3
C
o
n Course Description : Part I
s
u
m Module Lecture/Tutorial
e L1.1: Course Orientation & Subject Introduction
1. Introduction to Economics &
r L1.2: Scarcity, choice and opportunity cost
Economic Problems
L1.3: Production possibility frontier
B L2.1-2: Demand Concepts
e L2.3: Supply Concepts
2. Demand, Supply, & Elasticity
h L2.4: Market equilibrium
a L2.5: Elasticity of Demand
v L3.1: Budget constraint and its role
3. Household Behavior and
i L3.2-3: Concept of utility including DMU
Consumer choice
o L3.4: Income and Substitution effects
r
4
P
r
o Course Description : Part II
d
u
c Module Lecture/Tutorial
e L4.1: Behavior of profit maximizing firm in the
r 4. The Production Process short and long run
L4.2: Production process and production function
B L5.1: Types of costs
e 5. Costs and Output Decisions L5.2: Perfect competition, TR & MR
h L5.3: Profit Maximization in perfect competition
a L6.1: Labor Markets
6. Demand for Production Inputs
v L6.2: Land Markets
i
o
r
5
M
a
r Course Description : Part III
k
e Module Lecture/Tutorial
t
L7.1-2: Capital, Investment, and Depreciation
L7.3: Market Imperfections: An Introduction and
S
7. Market Imperfections: Monopoly Price & Output decisions is pure Monopoly
t
L7.4: Social Costs of Monopoly
r
L7.5: Price Discrimination
u
L8.1: Oligopolistic Market Structure and various
c
models
t 8. Market Imperfections: Oligopoly
L8.2: Strategic Interaction: Game Theory - I
u
L8.3: Strategic Interaction: Game Theory-II
r
L9.1: Product Differentiation & Role of
e
9. Market Imperfections: Advertisement
Monopolistic Competition L9.2: Price & Output determination in
6
Monopolistic Competition
M
a
c Course Description : Part IV
r
o Module Lecture/Tutorial
e
10. Introduction to Macroeconomics L10.1: Introduction to Macroeconomics and
c
and the Problems various concerns
o
L11.1-2: GDP: Meaning, concepts, and
n 11. Measurement of National
measurement
o Income & Output
L11.3: Nominal vs. Real GDP
m
L12.1-2: Supply of Money & Its Measurement
i
12. Money Supply and the Banking L12.3: The Indian Banking System
c
System L12.4: Credit Creation
s
L12.5: Monetary Policy of RBI
7
Study Material
Textbook – Case, K.E., Fair, R.C., & Oster, S.E.,
“Principles of Economics”, Pearson Education Limited,
12th Edition, 2017
Class notes
Other reference books and material – as suggested by
the instructor
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Evaluation Scheme
Max Duration Max. Marks
Component Weightage# Tentative Dates*
In Minutes (Out of 300)
Tut Test 1 30 10 % 30 9th Feb 2021
Tut Test 2 30 10 % 30 23rd Feb 2021
Mid-Sem 90 35 % 105 March 2021
Tut Test 3 30 10 % 30 23rd Mar 2021
Tut Test 4 30 10 % 30 13th Apr 2021
Comprehensive
120 35 % 105 11th May 2021
Exam
# Three best tut-tests would be considered for evaluation; * Dates are tentative and
subject to change as per the circumstances. Any change will be communicated well in
advance
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Time Table/Course Plan
37 full lectures (3 lectures per week – M W F)
Content-wise plan is given in the course handout
8 tutorial classes (on Tuesday)
4 tutorials for tut-test
10
Important Instructions
Chamber consultation – Students can approach to
me any time via email (rahul.arora@pilani.bits-
pilani.ac.in)
Notices – Please check your email regularly
Make-up policy – Allowed in genuine cases with
prior information and approval – Only allowed in
case of mid-semester and comprehensive exams
11
Evaluation Platform
Canvas LMS – [https://canvas.instructure.com/login/canvas ]
You all will receive an invite link
To accept, you need to make your free account using
your BITS Pilani email ID
Change your time zone settings under settings option
Other evaluation instructions would be shared time to
time
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