JPJC H2 Prelim 2024 P2 QP

JURONGPIONEERJUNIORCOLLEGEJC2PreliminaryExamination2024 ECONOMICS 9570/02Higher 2 11September2024 Paper2 2hours30minutes Additional materials:AnswerBooklets READTHESEINSTRUCTIONSFIRST Three answer booklets will be providedwiththis questionpaper. Youshouldfollowtheinstructions onthefront cover oftheanswerbooklet.Ifyouneedadditional answerbooklet,asktheinvigilatorforacontinuationbooklet.Answer three questions intotal, of which onemust befromSection Aand onefromSection Band onefromeitherSectionAorSectionB. Answereachquestiononanewanswerbooklet.Answersforeachquestionmustbehandedinseparately.Thenumberofmarksisgiveninbrackets[]attheendofeachquestionorpartquestion.If there are part questions youdidnot attempt, pleasewritethequestionnumber andpart inthemargins before you submit your answers. (e.g. if youdidnot complete2b, indicate2binthemarginoftheanswerscriptthatyousubmitforquestion2.) Thisdocumentconsistsof 3printedpagesand1blankpage. Answer threequestionsintotal.

2 SectionAOneofyourthreechosenquestionsmustbefromthissection. 1 Rental pricesacrosstheUShavesoaredover thepast year. Asthepandemicwearson, incomes start to rise, and more people are looking for their own space. At thesame time, pandemic-related supply chain disruptions that led to shortages of bothworkers and materials have resulted in widespread construction delays. As rentalprices soar across the country, more local governments are turning to rent controlmeasurestohelpcontainhousingcosts. (a) Explain howthe above mentioned events caused rental prices to soar intheUS. f[10] (b) Discusswhetherrentcontrol isthebestpolicytoaddresstherental crisisintheUS. [15] 2 The price mechanism allocates scarce resources in a free market through itssignalling, incentive, and rationingfunctions. However, it maynot alwaysachievethemicroeconomicgoal of efficiency. Therefore, governmentinterventionisoftenrequiredtoensureefficientresourceallocation. (a) Explain what isinvolvedinrational decision-makingbyeconomicagentssuchasconsumersandproducers. [10] (b) Discuss the view that government intervention is necessary to ensure anefficient resource allocation in the provision of public goods and goods withpositive externalities.[15] 3 Grab first announced its plan to acquire Singapore's third-largest taxi operatorTrans-cab in July 2023. The proposed takeover is expected to entrench andstrengthenGrab’salready-dominant positionintheride-hailingmarket andhasraisedtheconcernofCompetitionandConsumerCommissionofSingapore(CCCS). (a) Explain howbarriers to entry affect firms’ level of profits intheshort runandlong run.[10] (b) Discuss the potential benefits and costs to consumers and producers whenacquisition occurs in the ride-hailing market.[15]

3 SectionBOneofyourthreechosenquestionsmustbefromthissection. 4 TheJapaneseyensawasignificant depreciationin2022. Commentersarguethatthisisduetoglobal economicuncertaintiesandrisingglobal commoditiesprices. (a) Withtheaidof adiagram, explainonedemandandonesupplyfactor thatwouldcause a depreciation of a country’s currency.[10] (b) Discuss whether a depreciation of currency would be of overall benefit to aneconomy.[15] 5 Fiscal andmonetarypoliciesareusedbygovernmentsandcentral bankstoinfluenceacountry'seconomicperformanceandincreasereal GrossDomesticProduct(GDP). (a) Explain how fiscal and monetary policies impact the level of real GDP andunemploymentinacountry. [10] (b) Discuss the view that achieving a high rate of growth should be the economicpriority of a government.[15] 6 Protectionismincludespoliciesaimedatprotectingacountry'sdomesticindustriesfromforeigncompetitionandpromotingnational economicsecurity. (a) Explain two types of protectionist measures that would affect a country’s tradebalance.[10] (b) Discussthefactorsthat agovernment shouldconsider whendecidingwhethertoadopt protectionist measures as a tool to achieve its macroeconomic aims.[15]

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