Tag: Trade

Banana Republic

It’s the 4th of July, and Joe isn’t as excited as his parents are about the holiday. Gloria mentions that Joe should be excited to live in America because she grew up in a banana republic. The zinger is that Banana Republic is the only store available that she could have shopped at, but a banana republic is a political economy term used to describe a country with an economy that is dependent on a single export. Gloria, originally from Columbia, could also have come from a banana republic.

 

See more: absolute advantage, Banana Republic, comparative advantage, development, exports, inequality, international trade, political economy, trade

L’expo de Internationale

There’s a lot going on in this clip. The main focus is on Claire and Jay. Pritchett Closets (which Jay founded and Claire runs) has been selected to participate in the Expo Internationale du Closet! Both Claire and Jay are over the moon excited. But why? Participating in this event exposes them to an international market. They can expect a big increase in demand for their product. The second focus is on Manny. Manny has moved out but found that there are certain things about living at home that he really misses. This is something that a lot of people discover when they move out. These early lessons in personal finance can be tough!

 

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Miracle Gloves

Mitch and Cam needed a wedding videographer and Phil knows just the person to help. At an early stage in his life, Phil helped a friend with an infomercial he was filming and decided to reach out to the friend to pay him back as a wedding videographer. The concept of barter stems from the notion of double coincidence of wants. The videographer wanted someone to stand in for the infomercial and Phil wanted a favor down the line. Bartering is tough because the items at stake may not be able to be paid immediately or the exchange may be complicated. Traditionally, money is exchanged in the process, but Phil and his friend opted for a favor.

 

 

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The Value of Guilt

When Phil had a health scare, Claire gets dressed up for the hot firemen who are coming for him. She admits this to Phil before his procedure and he reminds her of it upon waking. After Claire apologizes, Phil says he will be fine with time even though he is fine with it now. Phil believes Claires guilt will grow over time giving him more bargaining power in the future.

 

 

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Joe is in a Tree?

Luke is baby-sitting for Gloria. She expects him to care for her son in a responsible way. When Luke posts a selfie on social media, Gloria worries that her son might be in danger. This represents the principal-agent problem. Luke is the agent and Gloria is the principal. Is he acting in her best interest? Of course not! He’s shirking. To cover up his shirking, Luke tells Gloria that he has a series of photographs of her son in dangerous situation but they’re all fake. Now, he needs a series of photoshopped pictures but doesn’t use photoshop. So, he decides to only give Manny something that he wants if he photoshops Gloria’s younger son in to dangerous situations. This represents trade through barter. Luke has a pass that Manny wants. Manny has a skill that Luke needs. They trade because they have a double coincidence of wants.

 

 

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