variable cost

economics

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accounting procedures

  • Budget planning
    In accounting: Cost finding

    …variable costing represents the average variable cost of making the product. Compared to the average full cost, the average variable cost is more useful when making short-term managerial decisions. In deciding whether to manufacture goods in large lots, for example, management needs to estimate the cost of carrying larger amounts…

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definitions of cost

theory of production

  • Figure 1: Isoquant diagram of hours of labour and feet of gold wire used per month.
    In theory of production: The production function

    …of terms, the first, covers variable cost (roughly“direct costs” in accounting terminology), which can be changed readily; another group, the second, covers fixed cost (accountants’ “overhead costs”), which includes items not easily varied. The discussion will deal first with variable cost.

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total cost

  • In total cost

    …of output produced, and all variable costs (e.g., the costs of labour and of raw materials), which do change with the level of output. If fixed costs are not altered (e.g., by obtaining a larger building or by acquiring more heavy machinery), the rate of increase of variable costs with…

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