Recent orders
Several years ago flooding along the Missouri and Mississippi rivers
Several years ago, flooding along the Missouri and Mississippi rivers destroyed thousands of acres of wheat.
a. Farmers whose crops were destroyed by the floods were much worse off, but farmers whose crops were not destroyed benefited from the floods. Why?
b. What information would you need about the market for wheat in order to assess whether farmers as a group were hurt or helped by the floods?
Beachfront resorts have an inelastic supply
Beachfront resorts have an inelastic supply, and automobiles have an elastic supply. Suppose that a rise in population doubles the demand for both products (that is, the quantity demanded at each price is twice what it was).
a. What happens to the equilibrium price and quantity in each market?
b. Which product experiences a larger change in price?
c. Which product experiences a larger change in quantity?
d. What happens to total consumer spending on each product?
Consider public policy aimed at smoking
Consider public policy aimed at smoking.
a. Studies indicate that the price elasticity of demand for cigarettes is about 0.4. If a pack of cigarettes currently costs $2 and the government wants to reduce smoking by 20 percent, by how much should it increase the price?
b. If the government permanently increases the price of cigarettes, will the policy have a larger effect on smoking one year from now or five years from now?
c. Studies also find that teenagers have a higher price elasticity than do adults. Why might this be true?