Assume That in Recent Years Both Expected Inflation and the Market

question 137

Multiple Choice

Assume that in recent years both expected inflation and the market risk premium (r_M -r_RF) have declined.Assume also that all stocks have positive betas.Which of the following would be most likely to have occurred as a result of these changes?

• A) The required returns on all stocks have fallen, but the fall has been greater for stocks with higher betas.
• B) The average required return on the market, r_M, has remained constant, but the required returns have fallen for stocks that have betas greater than 1.0.
• C) Required returns have increased for stocks with betas greater than 1.0 but have declined for stocks with betas less than 1.0.
• D) The required returns on all stocks have fallen by the same amount.
• E) The required returns on all stocks have fallen, but the decline has been greater for stocks with lower betas.

---

Definitions:

Long-run Average Total Cost

The average cost per unit of output over the long term, where all inputs are considered variable.

Output Q₀

The quantity of goods or services produced in a given period of time, denoted as Q₀ to specify a particular amount.

Diseconomies of Scale

The phenomenon where, as a firm expands, its costs start increasing per unit of output, usually due to inefficiencies and management challenges that arise with size.

Diminishing Returns

A principle stating that as investment in a particular area increases, the rate of profit from that investment, after a certain point, cannot continue to increase and may decrease.