Answer:
$3,000 favorable
Explanation:
The computation of actual and budgeted costs is shown below:-
          Budgeted                   Actual
          (18,000 units)               (18,000 units)
Variable     $54,000
          ($48,000 ÷ $16,000) × $18,000
Fixed       $270,000
Total        $324,000                  $321,000
Therefore, Actual cost is less than Budgeted, so the difference between actual and budgeted costs is $3,000 is favorable.