Accounting
Anthropology
Archaeology
Art History
Banking
Biology & Life Science
Business
Business Communication
Business Development
Business Ethics
Business Law
Chemistry
Communication
Computer Science
Counseling
Criminal Law
Curriculum & Instruction
Design
Earth Science
Economic
Education
Engineering
Finance
History & Theory
Humanities
Human Resource
International Business
Investments & Securities
Journalism
Law
Management
Marketing
Medicine
Medicine & Health Science
Nursing
Philosophy
Physic
Psychology
Real Estate
Science
Social Science
Sociology
Special Education
Speech
Visual Arts
International Business
Q:
The value creation activities of a firm are categorized as:
A.primary activities and support activities.
B.strategic activities and functional activities.
C.ancillary functions and tertiary functions.
D.primary activities and core activities.
E.goal-oriented activities and organizational activities.
Q:
A firm's profitability is maximized when it:
A.creates products similar to the products of its competitors.
B.strips all the value out of its product offering.
C.ensures that it has the right organization structure in place to execute its strategy.
D.picks a position on the efficiency frontier that is not viable.
E.does not configure its internal operations to reduce costs.
Q:
A firm maximizes its profitability when it:
A.creates products similar to the products of its competitors.
B.minimizes the value provided by its products.
C.picks a position on the efficiency frontier that is not viable.
D.strips all the value out of its product offering.
E.configures its internal operations to support the position selected by it on the efficiency frontier.
Q:
For a firm to maximize its profitability, it is necessary that it:
A.creates products similar to the products of its competitors.
B.does not configure its internal operations to reduce costs.
C.minimizes the value of the consumer surplus.
D.picks a position on the efficiency frontier that is viable.
E.strips all the value out of its product offering.
Q:
The efficiency frontier has a convex shape because of:
A.a high-cost structure.
B.diminishing returns.
C.a significantly low product value.
D.low production costs.
E.high profit growth.
Q:
Which of the following shows all of the different positions that a firm can adopt with regard to value creation and low cost assuming that its internal operations are configured adequately to support a particular position?
A.Demand-value model
B.Experience curve
C.Efficiency frontier
D.Optimal output model
E.Surplus curve
Q:
Superior value creation relative to rivals requires that the firm:
A.creates similar products as its competitors so that consumers do not have to pay a premium price.
B.has the highest cost structure in the industry.
C.creates the least valuable product in the eyes of consumers.
D.ensures that the gap between value and cost of production is greater than the gap attained by competitors.
E.drives up the cost structure of its business.
Q:
According to Michael Porter, superior profitability goes to a firm that:
A.creates similar products as their competitors.
B.keeps the gap between value and cost of production smaller than the gap attained by competitors.
C.drives down the cost structure of its business.
D.has the highest cost structure in the industry.
E.has the least valuable product in the industry.
Q:
According to Michael Porter, what are the two basic strategies for creating value and attaining a competitive advantage in an industry?
A.Differentiation and low-cost
B.Value creation and generalization
C.One-size-fits-all and zero-sum
D.Comparison and standardization
E.Profitability and strategic fit
Q:
Focusing primarily on increasing the attractiveness of a product is referred to as a:
A.standardization strategy.
B.differentiation strategy.
C.target-identification strategy.
D.low-cost strategy.
E.profitability strategy.
Q:
Which of the following of a firm is measured by the difference between the value of a product to an average consumer and the average unit cost of producing that product?
A.Customer surplus
B.Value creation
C.Cost curve
D.Value efficiency
E.Customer reservation
Q:
The value of a product to an average consumer is V, the average price that the firm can charge a consumer for that product is P, and the average unit cost of producing that product is C. For this scenario, which of the following is true?
A.The firm makes a profit so long as C is greater than P.
B.The higher C is relative to P, greater will be the profit.
C.The consumer surplus per unit is equal to V - P.
D.The higher the intensity of competitive pressure, the higher the price charged relative to V.
E.The lower the consumer surplus, the greater the value for the money the consumer gets.
Q:
The price that reflects an individual's assessment of the value of a product is referred to as:
A.the market price.
B.the customer's negotiated price.
C.the base value of the product.
D.the customer's reservation price.
E.the profit growth price.
Q:
One of the reasons why a firm typically charges for a good or service less than the value placed on that good or service by the customer is because:
A.the firm attempts to create value for the consumers by providing them a wide range of products.
B.it is normally impossible to segment a market based on each customer's reservation price.
C.the value creation results in a corresponding reduction in costs of production.
D.the firm frequently modifies its products to compete with the products introduced by other firms.
E.it is highly unlikely that the same good or service will be available to the customers from other firms.
Q:
As a result of consumer surplus, a firm typically charges a lower price for a good or service than the value placed on it by customers because:
A.the value creation results in a corresponding reduction in costs of production.
B.it is highly unlikely that the same good or service will be available to the customers from other firms.
C.the firm is competing with other firms for the customer's business.
D.the firm charges a price that reveals a consumer's assessment of the product's value.
E.the firm creates value for the customer by producing a wide range of products.
Q:
Typically, the price a firm charges for a good or service is:
A.less than the value placed on that good or service by the customer.
B.more than what customers assume it would be.
C.more than the market price for similar goods or services.
D.the same as the value placed on that good or service by the customer.
E.less than the lowest priced similar good or service in the market.
Q:
In general, the more value customers place on a firm's products:
A.the lesser the profitability of the firm.
B.the higher the competitive pressure from other firms.
C.the lesser the quality of the product.
D.the lesser the consumer surplus for those products.
E.the higher the price the firm can charge for those products.
Q:
The amount of value a firm creates is measured by:
A.the difference between the previous year's profitability and the current year's profitability.
B.dividing the market price of its products by the price that customers are actually willing to pay.
C.the difference between its costs of production and the value that consumers perceive in its products.
D.dividing the net profits of the firm by total invested capital.
E.the sum of the profitability of the last two fiscal years.
Q:
Profit growth is measured by:
A.dividing the net profits of the firm by total invested capital.
B.subtracting the previous year's gross profit from the current year's gross profit.
C.calculating the difference between the previous year's profitability and the current year's profitability.
D.the percentage increase in net profits over time.
E.adding the profitability of the last two fiscal years.
Q:
The rate of return that a firm makes on its invested capital is referred to as:
A.stakeholder return.
B.profitability.
C.profit growth.
D.process value.
E.strategic fit.
Q:
Strategic alliances allow firms to share the fixed costs of developing new products or processes.
Q:
An international strategy involves taking products first produced for their domestic market and selling them internationally with only minimal local customization.
Q:
According to researchers, firms facing strong pressures for local responsiveness should pursue a global standardization strategy.
Q:
A localization strategy involves some duplication of functions and smaller production runs.
Q:
A global standardization strategy makes most sense when there are strong pressures for cost reductions and demands for local responsiveness are minimal.
Q:
Firms that pursue an international strategy focus on increasing profitability by reaping the cost reductions that come from economies of scale, learning effects, and location economies.
Q:
Pressures for local responsiveness imply that it may not be possible to leverage skills and products associated with a firm's core competencies wholesale from one nation to another.
Q:
Universal needs exist when the tastes and preferences of consumers in different nations are different.
Q:
Strategies that increase profitability can also expand a firm's business and thus enable it to attain a higher rate of profit growth.
Q:
The firm that moves up the experience curve most rapidly will have a cost advantage vis--vis its competitors.
Q:
The ability to spread fixed costs over a large volume is one of the sources of economies of scale.
Q:
Learning effects will be more significant in an assembly process which involves 100 simple steps than in an assembly process which involves 1,000 complex steps.
Q:
The experience curve refers to systematic increases in production costs that have been observed to occur over the life of a product.
Q:
Location economies are the economies that arise from performing a value creation activity in the optimal location for that activity, wherever in the world that might be.
Q:
Successful global expansion requires the transfer of core competencies to foreign markets where indigenous competitors lack them.
Q:
Firms that operate internationally are able to realize location economies by dispersing individual value creation activities to locations where they are performed most efficiently and effectively.
Q:
The term organizational structure refers to the totality of a firm's organization, including organization architecture, control systems and incentives, organizational culture, processes, and people.
Q:
Maintaining the company infrastructure is a support activity.
Q:
In terms of attaining a competitive advantage, support activities can be as important as the primary activities of the firm.
Q:
The various value creation activities that a firm undertakes are referred to as operations.
Q:
According to Michael Porter, all positions on the efficiency frontier are viable.
Q:
Diminishing returns imply that when a firm already has significant value built into its product offering, increasing value by a relatively small amount requires only minimal additional costs.
Q:
A strategy that focuses primarily on increasing the attractiveness of a product is referred to as a low-cost strategy.
Q:
The higher the firm's profit per unit sold is, the greater its profitability will be, all else being equal.
Q:
Consumer surplus captures some of the value of a product thereby reducing the price a firm can charge for it.
Q:
The amount of value a firm creates is measured by the difference between its costs of production and the value that consumers perceive in its products.
Q:
Profit growth is measured by the percentage increase in net profits over time.
Q:
The actions that managers take to attain the goals of the firm are referred to as a firm's strategy.
Q:
From mid-2008 through early 2009, the value of the dollar moderately increased against major currencies, despite the fact that the American economy was suffering from a serious financial crisis. Which of the following was a reason for this phenomenon?
A.High real interest rates in the United States compared to any other developed region in the world sparked an inflow of funds into the country.
B.U.S. assets were characterized by a high-risk, high-return payoff which prompted foreign investors to park their funds.
C.Foreign investors were excited at the possibility of high returns following the government bail-out of financial institutions.
D.Foreign investors put their money in low-risk U.S. assets such as low-yielding U.S. government bonds.
E.Foreign investors saw opportunities in the United States as the level of indebtedness had begun to reduce.
Q:
Which of the following explains the rise of the dollar against most major currencies in the late 1990s, even though the United States was still running a significant balance-of-payments deficit?
A.Reduced government intervention in the foreign exchange market
B.Increased foreign investments in U.S. financial assets
C.Low real interest rates in the United States compared to the rest of the world
D.Increased exports as opposed to imports
E.Increased communism in the United States
Q:
Under the Plaza Accord of 1985, the Group of Five major industrial countries concluded that it would be desirable if:
A.the countries returned to a system of fixed exchange rates.
B.the participating members reverted to the gold standard.
C.the United States adopted protectionism to improve its trade balance.
D.most major currencies appreciated vis--vis the U.S. dollar.
E.governments did not regulate the buying and selling of currency.
Q:
The fall in the value of the U.S. dollar between 1985 and 1988 was caused by:
A.economic growth in the developed countries of Europe.
B.a fall in prices of exported U.S. goods.
C.a trade surplus in the United States during the previous years.
D.a combination of government intervention and market forces.
E.the protectionism measures adopted by European countries.
Q:
Which of the following is one of the reasons for the rapid rise in the value of the dollar between 1980 and 1985 despite a large trade deficit?
A.Political stability in all other parts of the world
B.Heavy capital outflows from the United States
C.Low real interest rates in the United States
D.Slow economic growth in the developed countries of Europe
E.Increasing exports against decreasing imports in the United States
Q:
Which of the following statements is true about the changes in the world monetary system since March 1973?
A.The value of the U.S. dollar has never seen a fall ever since.
B.Exchange rates have become much more volatile.
C.Exchange rates have become more predictable.
D.The fixed rate system was adopted to calculate exchange rates.
E.The European Monetary System as an institution has gained more prominence.
Q:
Which of the following was abandoned as per the Jamaica agreement of 1976?
A.Floating exchange rate system
B.U.S. dollar as the reference currency
C.Gold as a reserve asset
D.Membership to the International Monetary Fund
E.Granting International Monetary Fund loans to less developed countries
Q:
In January 1976, which one of the followed revised the International Monetary Fund's Articles of Agreement to reflect the new reality of floating exchange rates?
A.Jamaica agreement
B.Bretton Woods agreement
C.Marshall Plan
D.General agreement on Tariffs and Trade
E.Plaza Accord
Q:
Which of the following was the weakness of the Bretton Woods system?
A.It could be wrecked by heavy borrowings from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
B.It could not work if the U.S. dollar was under speculative attack.
C.The inflexibility of the system resulted in high unemployment.
D.It forced fiscal and monetary discipline on participating nations.
E.It allowed the countries to engage in competitive currency devaluations.
Q:
Which of the following was an announcement made by U.S. President Nixon to enable the devaluation of the dollar during the increase in inflation in 1971 in the United States?
A.The IMF member countries would adopt the gold standard to fix exchange rates.
B.The United States would no longer support the World Bank.
C.A new 15 percent tax would be charged on U.S. exports.
D.The dollar would no longer be convertible into gold.
E.German deutsche marks would be the new reference currency.
Q:
Under the U.S. macroeconomic policy package of 1965-1968, President Lyndon Johnson backed an increase in U.S. government spending that was financed by an increase in the money supply, resulting in:
A.increased exports.
B.a rise in price inflation.
C.increased taxes.
D.a positive trade balance.
E.an increase in the worth of currency.
Q:
Under the U.S. macroeconomic policy package of 1965-1968, President Lyndon Johnson backed an increase in U.S. government spending that was financed by:
A.the sale of gold reserves.
B.borrowing from the International Monetary Fund.
C.an increase in the money supply.
D.an increase in taxes.
E.selling bonds in the international capital market.
Q:
The collapse of the fixed exchange rate system has been traced to the:
A.U.S. macroeconomic policy package of 1965-1968.
B.inflexibility of the fixed exchange rate system that led to high unemployment.
C.Marshall Plan, under which the United States lent money heavily to European nations.
D.failure of the International Monetary Fund to impose monetary discipline.
E.increased taxes in the United States to finance its welfare programs.
Q:
Which of the following observations about the International Development Association (IDA) scheme of the World Bank is true?
A.Money is raised through bond sales in the international capital market.
B.Borrowers have up to 50 years to repay at an interest rate of less than 1 percent a year.
C.IDA loans go only to European countries.
D.Grants and interest-free loans are denied to governments of underdeveloped nations.
E.The bank offers loans only to customers with a satisfactory credit rating.
Q:
Which of the following is true of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) scheme of the World Bank?
A.Resources to fund IBRD loans are raised through subscriptions from wealthy members.
B.The interest rate charged by the World Bank is higher than the commercial banks' market rate.
C.Borrowers have to pay the bank's cost of funds plus a margin for expenses.
D.The bank avoids offering low-interest loans to risky customers whose credit rating is often poor.
E.It was established to approve currency devaluations that are beyond 10 percent.
Q:
What was the effect of the Marshall Plan?
A.The United States lent money directly to European nations to help them rebuild their economies.
B.Member countries of the International Monetary Fund were free to engage in competitive currency devaluations.
C.The World Bank lent funds to reconstruct the war-torn economies of Europe.
D.The United States lent money to third-world nations to support their public-sector projects.
E.The World Bank lent money to the International Monetary Fund so that it could finance deficit-laden countries.
Q:
Which of the following was responsible for the World Bank shifting its focus from Europe to third-world nations?
A.The Great Depression
B.The Jamaica agreement
C.World War II
D.The Marshall Plan
E.The Bretton Woods agreement
Q:
Which of the following was the initial mission of the World Bank?
A.Maintaining order in the international monetary system
B.Financing the building of Europe's economy by providing low-interest loans
C.Taking over as the successor to the International Monetary Fund
D.Reviving the gold standard system
E.Enforcement of the floating exchange rate system
Q:
Without currency devaluation, a country in "fundamental disequilibrium" would experience:
A.a persistent trade surplus.
B.a balance-of-payments equilibrium.
C.an increase in exports.
D.high unemployment.
E.deflation.
Q:
Which term was not defined in the International Monetary Fund's Articles of Agreement but was intended to apply to countries that had suffered permanent adverse shifts in the demand for their products?
A.Competitive disadvantage
B.Capital flight
C.Fundamental disequilibrium
D.Break-even point
E.Diseconomies of scale
Q:
How does the International Monetary Fund (IMF) provide loans to deficit-laden countries?
A.It prints the required currencies, thereby increasing money supply in those countries.
B.It acts as a market, buying goods from these countries and selling them to developed countries.
C.A pool of gold and currencies contributed by its members provides the resources for lending operations.
D.The World Bank lends the required amount to the IMF at a low interest rate.
E.It collects money from those countries that wish to devaluate their currencies.
Q:
The architects of the Bretton Woods agreement built limited flexibility into the fixed exchange rate system in order to:
A.avoid high unemployment.
B.facilitate competitive currency devaluations.
C.widen balance-of-payments gap between countries.
D.increase money supply and thereby price inflation.
E.avoid balance-of-trade equilibrium between countries.
Q:
Under a fixed exchange rate regime, what would be the result if a country rapidly increased its money supply by printing currency?
A.It would lead to an increase in the worth of the currency.
B.The prices of imports would become more attractive in the country.
C.The country's goods would be highly competitive in world markets.
D.Trade surplus in the country would increase.
E.It would lead to price deflation in the country.
Q:
An aspect of the Bretton Woods agreement was a commitment not to use:
A.the system of fixed exchange rates.
B.devaluation as a weapon of competitive trade policy.
C.gold as a measure to fix the value of currencies.
D.funds from the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
E.the U.S. dollar as a reference currency.
Q:
Which of the following observations is true of the Bretton Woods agreement?
A.The participating countries were required to exchange their currencies for gold.
B.Devaluation was accepted as a tool of competitive trade policy.
C.The agreement called for a system of floating exchange rates.
D.For weak currencies, devaluation of up to 10 percent was allowed without any formal approval by the International Monetary Fund.
E.A fixed exchange rate system was deemed impractical.
Q:
The objective of establishing the World Bank was to:
A.revive the gold standard.
B.promote general economic development.
C.control and manage the International Monetary Fund.
D.promote a floating exchange rate system.
E.approve large currency devaluations.
Q:
All countries were to fix the value of their currency in terms of gold but were not required to exchange their currencies for gold, according to the 1944:
A.Bretton Woods agreement.
B.Washington Consensus.
C.World Bank treaty.
D.Group of Five treaty.
E.United Nations agreement.
Q:
Which of the following was a reason that led to the collapse of the gold standard in 1939?
A.Difficulty and complexity in using the gold standard to determine the exchange rate
B.Agreement by governments to convert paper currency into gold on demand at a fixed rate
C.A cycle of competitive currency devaluations by various countries
D.Expansion in the volume of international trade in the wake of the Industrial Revolution
E.The inability of the gold standard to act as a mechanism for achieving balance-of-trade equilibrium by all countries
Q:
Argonia Republic is in trade surplus with Kamboly. Under the gold standard, which of the following statements is true until a balance-of-trade equilibrium is achieved?
A.There will be a net flow of gold from Argonia Republic to Kamboly.
B.The money supply in Kamboly will be reduced due to the flow of gold to Argonia Republic.
C.The prices of the traded goods in Kamboly will increase.
D.The demand for traded goods in Argonia Republic will increase.
E.Kamboly will start to buy more goods from Argonia Republic.
Q:
Certovia and Norkland are two neighboring countries that actively trade goods and services with each other. Under the gold standard, there will be a net flow of gold from Norkland to Certovia when:
A.Certovia is in trade deficit with Norkland.
B.Norkland is in balance-of-trade equilibrium with Certovia.
C.Certovia is in trade surplus with Norkland.
D.Certovia imports more than it exports to Norkland.
E.Norkland's balance of payment to Certovia is favorable.
Q:
In the 1930s, countries were devaluing their currencies at will in order to boost exports, thus shattering confidence in the:
A.floating exchange rate system.
B.gold standard system.
C.fixed exchange system.
D.Bretton Woods system.
E.managed-float system.
Q:
Which of the following statements is true about the gold standard?
A.Given a common gold standard, the value of any currency in units of any other currency was easy to determine.
B.Establishing a gold standard seemed impractical as the volume of international trade expanded in the wake of the Industrial Revolution.
C.A drawback of the gold standard was that it failed to provide a mechanism for achieving balance-of-trade equilibrium by all countries.
D.Under the gold standard, when a country has a trade deficit, there will be a net flow of gold from the other countries to that country.
E.The gold standard refers to the use of gold coins as a medium of exchange between countries involved in international trade.