The demand for housing is characterized by a regular pattern of increasing to a peak, then falling. when the demand reaches a low point, it then repeats the pattern. this pattern usually takes place over a three- to five-year period. this is an example of which type of demand pattern?

a) autocorrelation
b) step change
c) trend
d) seasonality and cycles

Bond x is noncallable and has 20 years to maturity, a 7% annual coupon, and a $1,000 par value. your required return on bond x is 10%; if you buy it, you plan to hold it for 5 years. you (and the market) have expectations that in 5 years, the yield to maturity on a 15-year bond with similar risk will be 9.5%. how much should you be willing to pay for bond x today? (hint: you will need to know how much the bond will be worth at the end of 5 years.) do not round intermediate calculations. round your answer to the nearest cent.

Robert black, regional manager for ford in texas and oklahoma, faced a dilemma. the ford f-150 pickup truck was the best-selling pickup ever, yet ford's headquarters in detroit had decided to introduce a completely redesigned f-150. how could mr. black sell both trucks at the same time? he still had "old" f-150s in stock. in his advertising, mr. black referred to the new f-150s as follows: "not a better f-150. just the only truck good enough to be the next f-150." this statement represents ford's of the new f-150.

The management of a supermarket wants to adopt a new promotional policy of giving a free gift to every customer who spends > a certain amount per visit at this supermarket. the expectation of the management is that after this promotional policy is advertised, the expenditures for all customers at this supermarket will be normally distributed with a mean of $95 and a standard deviation of $20. if the management wants to give free gifts to at most 10% of the customers, what should the amount be above which a customer would receive a free gift?