In: Economics
Real GDP Level: Research current and historical levels of RGDP in the US. Use credible Internet or other sources (e.g., government data, national newspapers) and CITE your source. Based on the data you found, what was the RGDP in the US in the most recent year you for which you could find data (in trillions of dollars)?
a) Low Oil Prices Are History's Greatest Case of Market Failure - The American Prospect (2nd December 2014)
(http://prospect.org/article/low-oil-prices-are-historys-greatest-case-market-failure)
b) The current oil prices are determined by the demand and suppy, it doesnot consider the external factors such as rising pollution, global climate change, rise in sea level and many more.This is a case of market failure because currently the oil proces are at it's lowest and the other enviornmental factors are deteriorating fast.
During the period 2007-2008, oil prices were at it's peak and there were talks that most probably the natural resources will finish and the world needs to find alternative resources. However, as Julian L. Simon predicted that high prices and technology would create substitutes, and prices will fall. Thus rather than investing on alternative energy the oil barrons invested on technology which allowed more sophisticated exploration of carbon fuels, which resulted in falling oil prices.
Thus leaving the oil prices to be completely determined through the market forces ia a clear cut example of market failure.
c) The market failure is because of negative externalities. Yes, government interventions in terms of regulating the prices will be hepful - if the government included the cost of negative externalities in fuel prices then the fuel prices will increase -> this will lead to less consumption of fuel which means less pollution (and other externalities) along with less exploration -> the extra money which is charged for the negative externalities can be used for R&D to help come up with cheaper alternative fuels -> which in the longrun will automatically reduce the negative externalities as pollution, climate change etc