Supply, Demand, and
the Market Process Lesson
3 | |
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Demand - The Consumers |
1. Demand Schedulev- shows the
quantity and price of a good, which consumers are willing to buy, ceteris
paribus. Note - demand has a time unit! Demand curve is a graph of the demand
schedule.
Buyers' demand for coffee (per year) |
Price ($ per pound) |
Quantity demanded (million pounds) |
$2.50 |
5 |
$2.00 |
10 |
$1.50 |
15 |
$1.00 |
20 |
$0.50 |
25 |
Buyers' Demand Curve |
Price |
|
Quantity |
- Law of Demand - as the market
price increases, the quantity demanded for a good decreases, ceteris
paribus.
- Why?
- Common sense
- When products are expensive, people buy less
- The principle behind business discounts
- Law of Diminishing Marginal
Utility - consuming additional units of a good yield
less and less additional utility i.e. satisfaction.
- Example: Hypothetical case for pizza
- utils are fictional units for satisfaction
- 1st slice, a person receives 100 utils (lots of
satisfaction), so he values it at $5 per slice.
- 2nd slice, a person receives 20 utils (some gain in
utility), so he values it at $3 per slice.
- 3rd slice, a person receives 5 utils (very little gain in
utility), so he values it at $1 per slice.
- Total utility = 125 utils; total spent = $9 for 3 slices of
pizza
- Composed of two effects.
- Income effect - as a product's
price decreases, a constant income buys more
- Example: Monthly income is $1,000 and price of beef
decreased
- Income effect - you can buy more beef with fixed income
- Substitution effect - as price
of a product decreases, people start buying it and “substitute away”
from more expensive, similar goods.
- Price change affects consumer's behavior
- Example: As the price decreases for Coca-Cola relative to
Pepsi, people substitute Coke for Pepsi
2. Two people are in the market. Each person has their
demand function. The quantity denoted by q is for a person, while Q
is the total market quantity. Likewise, demand by a consumer is
denoted by d, while market demand is D. Market demand - at each
market price, horizontally sum the quantity that each consumer
buys.
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Changes in Demand Versus Changes in Quantity
Demanded |
1. "Change in Demand" - the
demand curve shifts. Shift curves only "left" or "right." Do
not think of shifting curves "up" or "down."
Demand decreases |
Demand increases |
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"Change in Quantity
Demanded" - movement along the same demand curve, because the
price changed.
Movement along Demand Curve |
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2. Shifting the demand curve to the right; demand increases
- Income:
- Normal good - as income
increases, people have more money, and buy more, ceteris paribus
- Inferior good - as income
decreases, people have less money and buy more inferior goods, ceteris
paribus
- Number of consumers increases
- More people in the market to buy goods, ceteris paribus
- Price of other goods
- Substitute good's price
increases
- The price of DVD's increases, therefore, the demand increases
for VCR tapes, ceteris paribus
- Complement good's price
decreases
- The price of DVD's decreases, therefore, the demand for DVD
players increases, ceteris paribus
- Expectations - consumer
expectations of future prices, future availability, or future
income.
- During 1999 people believed widespread water shortages would occur
from Y2K. Thus, demand for water increased during 1999, ceteris
paribus.
- Demographic changes - population
of infants is greatly increasing, demand increases for baby goods,
ceteris paribus.
- Changes in consumer tastes and
preferences - for example, a report stated coffee reduced
colon cancer, demand for coffee increases, ceteris paribus.
- Weather - if the summer is very
hot, then people drink more Pepsi, ceteris paribus
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If the opposite occurs, then the demand curves will shift left,
i.e. decrease. | |
Supply - The Producers |
1. Opportunity cost of
production -all production costs are opportunity
costs. The labor, machines, and other resources could
produce other goods.
Profits = Total Revenue - Total Costs
- Role of Profits and Losses
- Profit: Total revenue > total cost
- Consumer's value > resource value
- Industry expands
- Loss: Total revenue < total cost
- Consumer's value < resource value
- Industry contracts
- Resources should be used to produce something else
- Supply schedule - shows the
quantity and price of a good that firms are willing to produce/sell,
ceteris paribus. A supply curve
is a graph of the supply schedule.
- Law of Supply - as the good's
price increases, then quality supplied increases, ceteris paribus.
- Why?
- As the price increases, the producers receive more revenue.
- Note - as production increases, then production costs may
increase. The higher price off-sets the additional production
costs.
- Note - the supply schedule has a time unit
Farmers' Supply of Tomatoes (per week) |
Price ($ per pound) |
Quantity supplied (1,000 pounds) |
$5 |
60 |
$4 |
50 |
$3 |
35 |
$2 |
20 |
$1 |
10 |
Supply Curve |
Price |
|
Quantity |
2. The short-run market supply is the horizontal sum of the all firms'
short-run supply curves. (Just like the demand curve). Market supply
is derived from two firms below:
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Changes in Supply Versus Changes in Quantity
Supplied |
1. "Change in Supply" -
entire supply curve shifts. Shift curves only "left" or
"right." Do not think of shifting curves "up" or "down."
Supply increases |
Supply decreases |
|
|
"Change in Quantity
Supplied" - movement along the same supply curve in response to
a price change.
Movement along Supply Curve |
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2. Shifting the supply curve to the right; supply increases.
- Resource prices
- Labor wages or resource materials' price decreases, firms can
supply more because of lower production costs
- Technological advances
- Technology allows firms to produce more output, using the same
levels of resources
- Nature and political disruptions
- Favorable weather for growing crops, resolving wars, etc.
- Decrease in taxes or increase government subsidies
- Decrease business cost and firms can provide more at each price
- Price of other goods
- Price for corn increases, so non-corn farmers start growing corn
- Producer's expectations of future prices.
- Firms expect sugar prices to be higher next year. Some firms
hoard sugar now, and sell the supply of sugar for next year
- Number of sellers
- More sellers in the market means more is produced
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If the opposite occurs, then the supply curves will shift left,
i.e. decrease. | |
How Market Prices Are
Determined |
- Market - an institution that
brings buyers and sellers together for specific goods and services.
- Examples:
- New York Stock Exchange - market for buyers and sellers of stock
for well-known corporations
- Foreign currency market
- Commodity market
- Assumption:
- The markets are perfectly competitive, i.e. large number of
independent buyers and sellers
- Equilibrium - a state of rest;
marke price and quantity do not change
- Equilibrium price - market
price where the forces of supply and demand are equal
- Equilibrium quantity - market
quantity where the forces of supply and demand are
equal
The Market for Potato Chips |
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- At $2 , quantity supplied =
quantity demanded:
- Equilibrium price = $2
- Equilibrium quantity = 10 units
- At $3 , quantity supplied >
quantity demanded:
- Surplus
- Suppliers have to much product, so price falls until it equals $2
- At $1 , quantity supplied <
quantity demanded:
- Shortage
- Consumers demand more than what is in stock, so they bid prices up
until it equals $2
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How Markets Respond to Changes in
Supply and Demand |
- Price of chicken increases (Substitute)
- Demand for beef increases (shifts right)
- Consumers substitute beef for chicken
- Equilibrium price and quantity increase
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- Scientists found Nutrasweet causes brain cancer (Tastes and
Preferences)
- Demand decreases (shifts left)
- Equilibrium price and quantity decrease
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Beef Market |
Nutra-sweet |
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- Technological advances in making computer chips
- Supply increase (shifts right)
- "cheaper computer chips"
- Equilibrium price decreases
- Quantity increases
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- Labor unions are successful in raising workers' wages at car
factories
- Supply decreases (shifts left)
- Production cost increase
- Equilibrium price increases
- Quantity decreases
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Computers |
Automobiles |
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Economics of Price
Controls |
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Price controls - government mandated
prices. Government thinks price is too high or too low.
1. Price ceilings - a legally
established maximum price that sellers may charge.
- Government thinks rent is too expensive. The market price is
P*, but the government sets maximum price at P~.
- Rent control price < market rent:
- Direct effect (When P* > P~).
- Quantity demanded (Qd) >
quantity supplied (Qs).
- Shortage
- Shortage does not disappear, because of the price control
Rental Market |
Price, Rent |
|
Quantity, Tenants |
- Secondary effects of price ceilings.
- Long waiting lists.
- "Under the table" payments to landlord.
- Buying expensive furniture from landlord.
- The lower price (i.e. rent) causes investors to avoid investing in
new housing.
- The quality of housing will deteriorate.
- Less maintenance and repairs, which lower costs.
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If P~ > P*, then
the price control has no effect on the market. |
2. Price Floor - a legally
established minimum price that buyers must pay.
- Government thinks workers' wages are too low and set the minimum
wage rate to $5.30 per hour (P~).
- Employers demand workers, while employees supply labor.
- Direct effect (When P~ > P*).
- Quantity supplied (Qs) >
quantity demanded (Qd).
- Surplus
- i.e. unemployment in this case
Labor Market (Unskilled workers) |
Price |
|
Quantity |
- Secondary effects of price ceilings.
- Employers reduce the following benefits.
- Health insurance.
- Job training.
- Pension plans.
- Minimum wage usually hurts unskilled labor, the poor, and
teenagers.
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If P* > P~ , then the price
control has no effect on the market, such as professional jobs which
pay more than $5.30 per hour. |
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Black Markets |
- Black Market - markets that
operate outside the legal system
- Also called the hidden economy or underground economy
- Illegal products and services
- Avoid high taxes
- Avoid costly regulations
- Circumvent price controls
- Decline in civic loyalty to government
- Black markets have:
- More defective products
- Higher profits
- Higher risk:
- Arrests
- Court fines and fees
- Jail or prison sentence
- Greater violence from enforcing contracts
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Terminology |
- demand schedule
- demand curve
- law of demand
- diminishing marginal utility
- income effect
- substitution effect
- normal goods
- inferior goods
- substitute good
- complement good
- change in demand
- change in quantity demanded
- opportunity cost of production
- supply schedule
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- law of supply
- supply curve
- change in supply
- change in quantity supplied
- market
- equilbrium
- equilibrium price
- equilibrium quantity
- price ceiling
- shortage
- price floor
- surplus
- black markets
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