9640 · Oxford AQA International AS Level
9640/11
Paper 1
Economics · 2023 · Variant 1
Relative difficulty
Analysis source: Oxford AQA
Analysis aligned to the official syllabus and assessment design.
3.8 / 5
160
210 min
Monetary policy transmission mechanisms and unconventional intervention policies
Cohort performance
Session statistics from official examination reports
Total marks
160
Duration
210 min
Session difficulty
3.8 / 5
Key examiner messages
Top priorities from the principal examiner before you revise
In Unit 1, the 20-mark question on government policies to promote healthy food consumption was a major discriminator.
High-scoring candidates demonstrated a solid grasp of different policy options (subsidies, taxation, legislation, education) and applied elasticities to evaluate their effectiveness.
However, weaker candidates frequently neglected the opportunity costs of these policies or failed to discuss unintended consequences like regressive taxation on low-income families.
In Unit 2, candidates who successfully explained the transmission mechanism of quantitative easing (QE)—from bond purchases to lower interest rates and aggregate demand shifts—secured excellent marks in the 9-mark diagram question.
Question difficulty map
How candidates performed on each question in this series
No data available in official reports
Assessment objectives
Skill and AO weighting from official examiner commentary
Skill weighting
Shows the skill mix this paper tested most heavily.
Knowledge and Understanding
Weight: 7100%Contextual Application
Weight: 686%Analytical
Weight: 457%Rigour
Weight: 343%Critical Evaluation
Weight: 229%
Method marks watchlist
Where working, steps, or method marks were commonly lost
No data available in official reports
Recurring mistakes across years
Themes examiners flag in multiple recent sessions for this subject
No data available in official reports
Question choice intelligence
Mean scores and popularity for optional questions (HKDSE electives)
No data available in official reports
Level exemplars
What candidate scripts at each grade level looked like
No data available in official reports
Grade & admission context
How marks relate to grade thresholds and entry standards
Report type
Examiner report — national grade boundaries and question-level commentary
Level A
Approx. 80% of maximum mark
Level B
Approx. 70% of maximum mark
Level C
Approx. 60% of maximum mark
Level D
Approx. 50% of maximum mark
Level E
Approx. 40% of maximum mark
Deep insights
What top candidates did
Techniques and approaches examiners rewarded in this series
No data available in official reports
Command word playbook
How to match each command word to the expected response style
Give reasons and link mechanism to outcome; each point needs a because/so chain.
Show formula, substitution, and unit; method marks need visible working.
Break into parts and explain how each contributes to the whole question focus.
Match the expected response style for “Assess” questions.
Present multiple perspectives with evidence; balance breadth and depth.
Match the expected response style for “Define” questions.
Match the expected response style for “extent” questions.
Time traps
Sections where candidates spent disproportionate time relative to marks
No data available in official reports
Syllabus traceability
Topics linked to questions and mark weighting in this session
Monetary policy
32 marks this session
Government intervention in markets
22 marks this session
The balance of payments on current account
15 marks this session
Price, income and cross elasticities of demand
14 marks this session
The demand for goods and services
12 marks this session
MCQ trap analytics
Commonly chosen wrong options from examiner commentary
No data available in official reports
Topic heatmap across years
Mark concentration by topic and exam year for this subject
Mark intensity
Government intervention in markets
Private goods, public goods and quasi-public goods (Market failure and government intervention in markets)
Monetary policy
Economic growth and the economic cycle
The determination of market prices
Economic growth and the economic cycle (Economic performance)
Positive and negative externalities in consumption and production
Supply-side policies
Difficulty trend
How session difficulty has shifted across recent years
Paper comparison
Marks and duration breakdown across papers in this session
Unit 1: The Operation of Markets, Market Failure and the Role of Government: Unit 2: The National Economy in a Global Environment:
Marks you can still earn
Where valid approaches outside the mark scheme may still gain credit
No data available in official reports
Practise what examiners flagged
Target weak topics from this report inside the Revui app
Monetary policy
32 marks this session
Practise in RevuiGovernment intervention in markets
22 marks this session
Practise in RevuiThe balance of payments on current account
15 marks this session
Practise in RevuiPrice, income and cross elasticities of demand
14 marks this session
Practise in RevuiThe demand for goods and services
12 marks this session
Practise in RevuiSelf-diagnostic checklist
Key actions before you sit this paper — copy and tick off as you revise
- 1Message
In Unit 1, the 20-mark question on government policies to promote healthy food consumption was a major discriminator.
- 2Message
High-scoring candidates demonstrated a solid grasp of different policy options (subsidies, taxation, legislation, education) and applied elasticities to evaluate their effectiveness.
- 3Message
However, weaker candidates frequently neglected the opportunity costs of these policies or failed to discuss unintended consequences like regressive taxation on low-income families.
- 4Message
In Unit 2, candidates who successfully explained the transmission mechanism of quantitative easing (QE)—from bond purchases to lower interest rates and aggregate demand shifts—secured excellent marks in the 9-mark diagram question.
Teacher briefing pack
One-page session summary for tutors and classroom review
2023 2023
Economics
In Unit 1, the 20-mark question on government policies to promote healthy food consumption was a major discriminator. High-scoring candidates demonstrated a solid grasp of different policy options (subsidies, taxation, legislation, education) and applied elasticities to evaluate
In Unit 1, the 20-mark question on government policies to promote healthy food consumption was a major discriminator.
High-scoring candidates demonstrated a solid grasp of different policy options (subsidies, taxation, legislation, education) and applied elasticities to evaluate their effectiveness.
However, weaker candidates frequently neglected the opportunity costs of these policies or failed to discuss unintended consequences like regressive taxation on low-income families.
- Total marks
- 160
- Duration
- 210 min
- Session difficulty
- 3.8 / 5
Session analysis
In Unit 1, the 20-mark question on government policies to promote healthy food consumption was a major discriminator. High-scoring candidates demonstrated a solid grasp of different policy options (subsidies, taxation, legislation, education) and applied elasticities to evaluate their effectiveness. However, weaker candidates frequently neglected the opportunity costs of these policies or failed to discuss unintended consequences like regressive taxation on low-income families. In Unit 2, candidates who successfully explained the transmission mechanism of quantitative easing (QE)—from bond purchases to lower interest rates and aggregate demand shifts—secured excellent marks in the 9-mark diagram question. Marks were frequently lost on the 4-mark GDP calculation due to incorrect handling of secondary and primary income balances or forgetting to scale the surplus properly.
Updated Jun 12, 2026
Paper breakdown
Unit 1: The Operation of Markets, Market Failure and the Role of Government: Unit 2: The National Economy in a Global Environment:
Top chapters
Exam structure insights
Marks by chapter
See where the marks were concentrated so revision time goes to the highest-value topics.
Mark accessibility
Estimate which marks were basic, mid-level, or high-difficulty.
69% within easy or medium reach
Command word frequency
Spot common command words so answers match the expected response style.
Question type mix
Compare the mark share of each paper section and question type.
Evaluative Essay
40·2·25%
Multiple Choice
30·30·19%
Short-answer Explanation
24·4·15%
Analytical Essay
24·2·15%
Essay with Diagram
18·2·11%
Short Definition
12·4·8%
Quantitative Calculation
12·4·8%
Study ROI
Bigger bubbles recur more often; higher bubbles carry more marks, helping you rank revision priorities.
Next-year prediction
Topics worth watching next year, with the reason shown directly below each bar.
Fiscal policy conflicts and national debt sustainability
5%5%
Labour market wage determination and imperfections
4%4%
Monopoly power, oligopoly behaviour, and competition policy
4%4%
Examiner notes & key calculations
- Failing to link elasticity to policy outcomes: When evaluating a subsidy or a tax, always explicitly mention how the price elasticity of demand (PED) affects the quantity traded and consumer/producer burden.
- Vague Definitions: Key definitions like opportunity cost and interest rate must be exact. Inexact definitions (such as 'the cost of holding money' without referring to percentages/cost of borrowing/reward for saving) failed to score full marks.
- Weak Diagrammatic Integration: Many candidates drew correct positive externality diagrams but did not refer to them in their text or left the axis labels incomplete. Diagrams must be fully integrated into the narrative.
- Imprecise Calculations: Unit 2's calculation of percentage change in the export price index required negative sign indicators for the fall of −10.2%-10.2\%−10.2%. Omitting the sign or showing incorrect rounding led to lost marks.
Analysis is paraphrased for study purposes. Always verify against the official examiner report and mark scheme.