Industrial Economics

Industrial Economics also gives insights into how firms organize their activities, as well as considering their motivation. In many micro courses, profit maximization is taken as given, but many industrial economics courses examine alternative objectives, such as trying to grow market share.There is also an international dimension ¿ firms have the option to source inputs (or outsource production) overseas. As such, while industrial economics more frequently uses skills and knowledge from micro courses, macroeconomic concepts are sometimes employed.One of the key issues in industrial economics is assessing whether a market is competitive. Competitive markets are normally good for consumers (although they might not always be feasible) so most industrial economics courses include analysis of how to measure the extent of competition in markets. It then considers whether regulation is needed, and if so the form it should take. There is again an international dimension to this, as firms that operate in more than one country will face different regulatory regimes.