Question

Which of the following is most likely a topic of discussion in macroeconomics? Question 5 options: an increase in the price of a hamburger a decrease in the production of DVD players by a consumer electronics company an increase in the wage rate paid to automobile workers a decrease in the unemployment rate

Answer 1

Answer:

A decrease in the unemployment rate is most likely a topic of discussion in macroeconomics.

Explanation:

Macroeconomics studies the economy as a whole, in a large-scale (e.g.: national or global) level. On the other hand, microeconomics studies the decisions of individuals (e.g.: people or companies).

Keeping this in mind, let's analyze the options that we're given:

1. An increase in the price of a hamburger: This would be macroeconomic if, for example, the prices of all products in the economy increase as well (that wold be the inflation); but, since we're dealing with the price increase of a single product, this belongs to microeconomics.
2. A decrease in the production of DVD players by a consumer electronics company: In this case, we are also talking about microeconomics since it's just one company that is decreasing its production of a very specific good. If all goods or services decreased within an economy, we would be dealing with a macroeconomic scenario.
3. An increase in the wage rate paid to automobile workers: In this scenario, we are dealing with the effect of the increase of the wage rate paid to a single segment of the economy, so it's microeconomic. If we were dealing with an increase of the minimum wage, then it would affect all or most workers in an economy regardless of their sector, so it would be macroeconomic.
4. A decrease in the unemployment rate: The unemployment rate measures the amount of unemployed workers out of the total workforce. This is a macroeconomic variable since it describes the aggregate of an economy, is related to other variables such as GDP, and allows us to have an idea of the structure of that economy. It doesn't tell us any information about the decisions of the individuals.

Therefore, a decrease in the unemployment rate is most likely a topic of discussion in macroeconomics.