The opportunity cost of producing capital goods today is:

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Producing capital goods today requires sacrificing some current consumption; therefore the opportunity cost is current consumption.

1) Relevant knowledge points and concepts
- Opportunity cost: the value of the next-best alternative forgone when a choice is made.
- Capital goods vs. consumption goods: capital goods (machines, factories) increase future productive capacity; consumption goods (food, clothing) provide present utility.
- Production Possibility Frontier (PPF): shifting resources toward capital moves production along the PPF from consumption toward capital, reducing current consumption.

2) Step-by-step reasoning
- Society has limited resources. Choosing to allocate more resources to capital goods means those same resources cannot be used to produce consumption goods now.
- The next-best alternative to producing capital goods is producing consumption goods for current use. Thus the foregone consumption equals the opportunity cost of the increased capital production.

3) Simple numeric illustration (intermediate steps)
- Suppose an economy can produce either 100 units of consumption (C) and 0 capital (K), or shift resources so it produces 80 C and 20 K.
- By moving to 20 K, current consumption falls from 100 to 80, so foregone consumption = 20 units.
- That 20 units of consumption is the opportunity cost of creating 20 units of capital today.

4) Why the correct answer is correct
- Opportunity cost measures what is given up now to gain something else. Producing capital goods today gives up present consumption; future benefits (higher future consumption or growth) are returns, not the cost paid today.

5) Why the other options are incorrect
- b. future consumption: this is a benefit resulting from investment in capital, not the immediate cost foregone.
- c. future high economic growth: a potential outcome of more capital, again a future benefit rather than the current opportunity cost.
- d. producing inside the PPF: producing inside the PPF indicates inefficiency (wasted resources), not the opportunity cost of choosing capital over consumption.

6) Conclusion
The opportunity cost of producing capital goods today is current consumption — answer (a) is correct.

The opportunity cost of producing capital goods today is:单项选择题

类似问题

11. XYZ Corp spent $1500 on a new computer. The opportunity cost of the computer was: A. $0, because it is a sunk cost B. $0, because it is an explicit cost C. $1500, the amount spent on the computer D. $1500 minus the amount XYZ could get reselling it

You are a taxi driver in Melbourne who earns A$60 for a day’s work. You have been offered a one-day ticket to the Australian Open for A$20. As a tennis fan, you value the experience at A$150. With this information, read the following statements and select the correct one(s).

You are a taxi driver in Melbourne who earns A$50 for a day’s work. You have been offered a one-day ticket to the Australian Open for A$40. As a tennis fan, you value the experience at A$100. With this information, read the following statements and select the correct one(s).

You are a taxi driver in Melbourne who earns A$60 for a day’s work. You have been offered a one-day ticket to the Australian Open for A$20. As a tennis fan, you value the experience at A$150. With this information, read the following statements and select the correct one(s).

You are a taxi driver in Melbourne who earns A$70 for a day’s work. You have been offered a one-day ticket to the Australian Open for A$50. As a tennis fan, you value the experience at A$100. With this information, read the following statements and select the correct one(s).

更多留学生实用工具

智能学习助手

风格化写作助手

论文查重助手

文献引用助手

课堂转译助手

课堂笔记助手

Quiz搜索助手

学校历年真题

智能刷题助手

智能匹配练习

希望你的学习变得更简单