May/June 2025 Economics 9708: Post-Exam Deconstruction

The May/June 2025 sittings of Cambridge International AS & A Level Economics (9708) presented a balanced yet challenging set of papers. Across Paper 1, Paper 2, Paper 3, and Paper 4, candidates faced a series of questions designed to probe beyond superficial memorisation, rewarding instead those who demonstrated structured logical reasoning and contextual policy application.

Key Areas of Mark Distribution

The core structural weightings centered heavily on macroeconomic policy coordination, consumer theory, and government interventions. In the AS series, candidates who mastered the mechanics of fiscal and monetary interventions secured high returns, especially on Paper 2's data response on US inflation and policy rates. For the A Level candidates, indifference curve analysis (Paper 4, Question 2) and the complexities of stagflation (Paper 4, Question 4) carried massive mark weights, testing advanced graphical skills and multi-layered policy evaluations.

Common Pitfalls & Examiner Concerns

  • Descriptive Chronology: In data response questions such as Paper 21, 1(a), too many candidates listed month-by-month values for inflation and interest rates instead of performing a direct comparative synthesis.
  • Terminology Confusions: A persistent weakness was the inability to sharply distinguish between disinflation (a reduction in the rate of inflation) and deflation (a sustained decrease in the general price level), severely limiting performance on high-mark comparative tasks.
  • Missing Diagrammatic Anchors: In Paper 4, Question 4, candidates who failed to construct an accurate Aggregate Demand/Aggregate Supply (AD/AS) diagram to represent a negative output gap faced a strict marking cap, regardless of the quality of their written analysis.

Strategic Revision Advice & Outlook

To excel in future sittings, students must treat diagrams not as optional decorations, but as structural anchors for their analysis. Every policy mechanism—such as a shift from a closed to an open circular flow or a tariff elimination—must be paired with its exact graphical equivalent. Furthermore, evaluation marks are won on the margins: do not just state that a policy is beneficial; investigate the time lags, the elasticity of response (such as PED and PES in subsidy/tax analysis), and the opportunity costs associated with government expenditure.