Supply & Demand - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

FDIC Intervenes after Silicon Valley Bank Failure

March 14, 2023

Last Friday, a combination of imprudent decision-making and panicked customers led to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), a 40-year-old financial institution based in Santa Clara, California. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) stepped in to prevent further fallout, putting nearly $175 billion in customer deposits under the regulator’s control. SVB’s meltdown represents the second largest bank failure in U.S. history, and the largest one since the 2008 financial crisis. As a result of this chaotic situation, stock prices Continue reading →

Banking, Regulation, Federal Reserve, Supply & Demand, Ethics, Stock markets, FDIC, Financial collapse

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 18: Financial Management, Chapter 19: Securities Markets, Chapter 20: Money and Financial Institutions

[VIDEO] Why is Everything Getting So Expensive?

March 10, 2023

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Prices on everyday products like groceries and diapers have increased dramatically in the last couple of years, with inflation often being identified as the culprit. This video takes a close look at the potential causes of the post-pandemic trend of rising inflation, examining why supply chain issues and plain old markups could be responsible for ever-increasing prices.

Questions:

What are the potential causes of inflation outlined in this video? Which factor do you think is the most likely cause Continue reading →

[VIDEO] How Commodity Markets Work

March 3, 2023

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Florida’s orange crop is shrinking year after year, sending commodity prices skyrocketing for orange juice concentrate. This video examines the intricacies of commodity markets through the lens of concentrated OJ, looking at concepts like futures contracts and how they affect both farmers and retailers.

Questions:

Why has Florida’s plummeting orange production caused juice prices to increase significantly?
What are the benefits of futures contracts for farmers and manufacturers?

Product Distribution, Operations Management, Agriculture, Commodities, Food & Drink, Supply & Demand, Retail, Pricing

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 19: Securities Markets, Videos

Inflation Fears Sink Stocks to Lowest Point in 2023

March 1, 2023

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Last Friday, the stock market tumbled to its lowest point so far this year, with the S&P 500 falling for three weeks straight while the Dow Jones similarly slumped due to disappointing economic data. Investors expected inflation to decline more at the start of 2023, but experts say that it has actually re-accelerated in recent months. As a result, the Federal Reserve may continue to raise interest rates, a measure used to combat inflation that reduces the amount of Continue reading →

Stock valuation, Regulation, Federal Reserve, Recession, Interest Rates, Securities Markets, Supply & Demand, Global, Stock Market, Inflation

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 19: Securities Markets, Chapter 20: Money and Financial Institutions

[VIDEO] Making 100,000 Bagels a Week by Hand

February 22, 2023

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While last week we looked at how Domino’s relies on automation to mass produce its pizza dough, today’s video examines the operations at a company that takes the opposite approach. At Utopia Bagels in New York City, a well-trained staff of specialists make thousands of bagels by hand every day, all driven by a passionate owner whose love for his craft comes through in this video.

Questions:

What are the advantages and disadvantages of making bagels entirely by hand?
What Continue reading →

Motivation, Operations Management, Entrepreneurship, Product Development, Training, Product Distribution, Supply & Demand, Specialized labor, Marketing

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 10: Motivation, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Videos

Egg Prices Continue to Soar as Inflation Starts to Fall

January 27, 2023

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Food prices hiked by inflation have taken a toll on Americans’ wallets for more than a year, although economists say that costs for a number of commodities are finally starting to fall. But that has not been the case with eggs: the average U.S. price per dozen hit $4.25 in December 2022, up from $1.79 a year earlier. The situation is especially bad in costly markets like California, where 12 Grade A large eggs go for an average of $7.37. Continue reading →

Pricing, Regulation, Product Distribution, Operations Management, Food & Drink, Ethics, Supply & Demand

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

How Some New Yorkers Earn Six Figures by Walking Dogs

January 25, 2023

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When Bethany Lane moved to New York City after graduating from college, she immediately looked for ways to make money in her expensive new home. “I had to pay my rent and student loans, so I went on Craigslist,” she said. “I saw that somebody would pay me to walk dogs. As an animal lover who is obsessed with dogs, it was perfect.” The job worked out so well that by 2014 Lane founded Whistle & Wag, a boutique pet Continue reading →

Pricing, Pets, Supply & Demand, Marketing, Pandemic, Entrepreneurship, Sole Proprietorship

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 5: Forms of Business Ownership, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price

FAA Computer Outage Delays Thousands of Flights

January 13, 2023

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Last week, we looked at how bad weather and an overloaded scheduling system led to disastrous consequences for Southwest Airlines as it canceled more than 13,000 flights over the holidays. But while this disaster could at least be partly blamed on a rough winter storm, airports had no such excuse on Wednesday when a computer outage led to another massive wave of cancellations and delays. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), a damaged database file corrupted the agency’s system Continue reading →

Marketing, Branding, Operations Management, Regulation, Ethics, Travel, Supply & Demand, Airlines

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

[VIDEO] Why Layoffs Are Hitting Professional Workers

January 11, 2023

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As the post-pandemic economic recovery slows down, many companies are looking to trim their bottom lines through restructuring and layoffs. Unlike in previous downturns, however, professional employees have largely been on the receiving end of these job cuts. The video below examines why white collar workers are more likely to receive a pink slip than their blue collar brethren.

Questions:

Why are white collar workers facing a disproportionate amount of layoffs as the economy slows down?
How can the strong Continue reading →

Layoffs, Ethics, Recession, Human Resources, Supply & Demand, Compensation, Frontline workers

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 12: Labor Management and Unions, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Videos

Southwest’s Meltdown Creates Holiday Travel Nightmare

January 4, 2023

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The end of December is one of the busiest travel times of the year as people rush back and forth from home for the holidays. For travelers who booked trips on Southwest Airlines, though, the season was even more stressful as the carrier canceled more than 13,000 flights in less than a week. The trouble started when a major winter storm swept the country and prevented many pilots and flight attendants from working. Southwest staff usually solve this problem by Continue reading →

Ethics, Unions, Branding, Labor Relations, Travel, Holidays, Supply & Demand, Airlines

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 10: Motivation, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution