chapter 5 elasticity you are responsible for reading chapter 4!!!
TRANSCRIPT
What have we done?
• Chapter 3 gave us downward sloping demand curves– Law of demand
• Now want to see how Qd changes when price changes
Elasticity
• Response of one variable to a change in another variable
• Price elasticity of demand– Measure of the responsiveness of Qd of a
product to a change in the price of that product
So…
• What if Ed = 3?– If price was increased from the prevailing
point the % change in Qd would be 3 times the change in price
• Shouldn’t it be negative?– So price increases and Qd decreases?
• Yes!!– For ease we look at the absolute value, but
know that the law of demand holds
example
• P1 = 10• P2 = 12• Q1 = 100• Q2 = 50• Elasticity??• Which is Point A??? • Big Problem!!!
6
121210
5050100
;2
5.2
101012
10010050
;1
A
A
Arc Elasticity
• To avoid the endpoint problem take elasticity at the midpoint (average) of the two points
2
2
2
2
21
21
21
21
21
21
PPPP
QQQQ
PPP
QQQ
E
dd
dd
dd
d
d
Differences
• With arc elasticity it is clear which points are used
• P1 is the first price
• P2 is the second price
• Qd1 and Qd2 are the first and second quantity demanded respectively
Price elasticity of demand can yield 5 basic results
• Numerator > Denominator
• Numerator < Denominator
• Numerator = Denominator
• Numerator = 0
• Denominator = 0
• Each has a specific name and result
Elastic Demand
• Ed > 1
• % change in quantity demanded > % change in price
• FLATTER CURVE
• What are some examples of an elastic good???
Inelastic Demand
• Ed<1
• % change in the price > percent change in quantity demanded
• STEEPER CURVE
• What are some examples of an inelastic good?
Price Elasticity of Demand Price Elasticity of Demand
a
0
Quantity Demanded
Price
D
10%
20%
Q1
Part (a)
Q2
P1
P2
Ed > 1Elastic
0
Quantity Demanded
Price
D
10%
4%
Q1
Part (b)
Q2
P1
P2
Ed < 1Inelastic
Unit Elastic Demand
• Ed=1
• % change in price = % change in quantity demanded
• Change in price brings a proportionate change in quantity demanded
• CURVE
Price Elasticity of Demand Price Elasticity of Demand
a
0
Quantity Demanded
Price
D
10%
10%
Q1
Part (c)
Q2
P1
P2
Ed = 1Unit Elastic
Perfectly Elastic Demand
• Ed = (denominator = 0)• % change in quantity demanded is A LOT in
response to a change in price • Price increases and quantity demanded goes
to 0• Totally flat --- horizontal• Extreme• Examples???
Perfectly inelastic demand
• Ed = 0
• % change in quantity demanded DOESN’T CHANGE in response to a change in price
• Totally steep --- vertical
• Extreme
• Examples???
Price Elasticity of Demand Price Elasticity of Demand
a
0Quantity Demanded
Price
D1%
Part (d)
Q1
P1
P2
Ed = Perfectly Elastic
0Quantity Demanded
PriceD
10%
Part (e)
Q1
P1
P2
Ed = 0Perfectly Inelastic
Aren’t demand curve downward sloping?
• Because the extremes (perfectly inelastic and perfectly elastic) are not.
• Use as points of reference only
How does a change in price affect Total Revenue of a Firm?
• Revenue depends on elasticity
• Michael Jordan and Nike shoes– No substitutes -- inelastic demand
• What happens to Qd if price increases?
– Substitutes – elastic demand• What happens to Qd if price increases?
What is total revenue??
• Total revenue = price*quantity
• Firm uses to decide if to produce more or less
examples• Elastic demand
– Price increase– Price decrease
• Inelastic demand– Price increase– Price decrease
• Unit elastic demand– Price increase– Price decrease
Elasticities, Price
Changes, and Total
Revenue
Elasticities, Price
Changes, and Total
Revenue
a
Ed > 1
P TR
P TR
Ed < 1
P TR
P TR
Ed = 1
P
P
TR
TR
Important to look at because…
• Elasticity of the demand determines if with a price increase…– Total revenue increases– Total revenue decreases– Total revenue remains the same
Price elasticity of demand and a straight line
• Demand is downward sloping
• Along the line elasticity varies from highly elastic to highly inelastic
• But…remember SLOPE is constant
Price Elasticity of Demand along a Demand Curve
Price Elasticity of Demand along a Demand Curve
a
(1)POINT
(2)PRICE
(3)QUANTITY
DEMANDED
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
(4)Ed
$8
7
6
5
4
3
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
2.14
1.44
1.00
0.69
0.47
0.29
(a)
Price (dollars)
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Quantity Demanded
A
B
C
D
E
F
G D
ElasticRange
Unit ElasticRange
InelasticRange
(b)
Summary• Upper end of Demand Curve
– Qd is low and price is high– Freak out more when price is high
• Lower end of Demand Curve– Qd is high and price is low– Freak out less when price is low
So…
• As move down the demand curve from higher prices to lower the price elasticity of demand goes from elastic to inelastic
Determinates of price elasticity of demand
• Number of substitutes available– Increase substitutes increases elasticity– More narrowly defined goods have more
substitutes (compared to broadly defined)• Example: Fords vs all cars
More determinates
• Percentage of one’s budget that is spent on the good– More expensive??? More elastic– More affected by price (even small changes)
Final determinate
• Amount of time that passed since price change– Increase time passed gives more opportunity
to change behavior or react to price change– Overtime can look for substitutes– Increase time increases elasticity– More elastic in long term than short
Cross Elasticity of Demand
• Measures the responsiveness of quantity demanded to a change in price of ANOTHER good
2
2%
%
12
12
12
12
yy
yy
xx
xx
y
dxc
PP
PP
QQQQ
P
QE
When would you use Cross Price Elasticity?
• To determine if goods are substitutes or compliments• Ec>0 – substitutes
– % change in quantity demanded and price move in same direction
• Ec<0 – compliments– % change in quantity demanded and price move in
opposite directions• Ec=0 – goods unrelated
Income elasticity of demand
• Measures the responsiveness of quantity demanded to the change in income
2
2%
%
12
12
12
12
YYYY
QQQQ
income
QE
xx
xx
dy
Why use income elasticity of demand?
• Use to determine if a good is normal or inferior
• Ey>0 – normal good– As income increases Qd increases
• Ey<0 – inferior good– As income increases Qd decreases
Can also say…
• If |Ey| > 1– % change in Qd > % change in Y– Income elastic
• If |Ey| < 1– % change in Qd < % change in Y– Income inelastic
• If |Ey| = 1– % change in Qd = % change in Y– Income unit elastic
Can we use income elasticity in the real world??
• If invest in the stock market do you want to invest in a normal or inferior good?
• Normal
• Why
• Increase income would increase quantity bought and increase stock prices
Price Elasticity of Supply• Measures the responsiveness of quantity supplied of
a good to the change in the price of that good
2
2%
%
21
21
21
21
PPPP
QQQQ
PP
Q
Q
E
ss
ss
s
s
s
Classification is like demand
• Es > 1– Elastic
• Es < 1– Inelastic
• Es = 1– Unit elastic
• Each of these will result in a “normal” upward sloped supply curve
Any extreme elasticities???
• Yes!!
• Es = – Perfectly elastic or horizontal
• Es = 0– Perfectly inelastic or vertical
Price Elasticity of Supply Price Elasticity of Supply
a
0
Quantity Supplied
Price
S
10%
20%
Q2
Part (a)
Q1
P1
P2
Es > 1Elastic
0
Quantity Supplied
Price
S
10%
4%
Q2
Part (b)
Q1
P1
P2
Es < 1Inelastic
Price Elasticity of Supply Price Elasticity of Supply
a
0Quantity Supplied
Price
S
10%
10%
Q2
Part (c)
Q1
P1
P2Es = 1Unit Elastic
Price Elasticity of Supply Price Elasticity of Supply
a
0
Quantity Supplied
Price
S
Part (d)
Q1
P1
Es = Perfectly Elastic
0
Quantity Supplied
PriceS
10%
Part (e)
Q1
P1
P2
Es = 0PerfectlyInelastic
Does time play a role in elasticity of supply?
• Yes!!
• Overtime producers are able to adjust their behavior and production patterns
• Supply becomes more elastic as time passes
Elasticity and taxes
• If government levies a tax on a product who pays the tax??
• Producers?? Consumers?? Share??
• Depends on the elasticity of demand and supply
How find??• Find equilibrium price
• Supply shifts left in the amount of the tax
• Find new equilibrium
• Find point of second equilibrium on ORGINAL supply curve
– Shows the actual price realized by firm or equilibrium price – tax = point in question
• Difference between points determines how much of tax you pay
Who Pays the Tax? Who Pays the Tax?
a
0
8.00
7.50
8.50
9.00
Quantity of VCR Tapes
A
B
Q2
D1
$1 Tax
Q1
S2 (after tax)
S1 (before tax)
Price(dollars)
Part of tax paidby consumers interms of higher
price paid.
Part of tax paidby producers interms of lower
price kept.
Who pays more of the tax??
• Perfectly inelastic demand
• Perfectly elastic demand
• Demand more elastic than supply
• Supply more elastic than demand
Different Elasticities and Who Pays the Tax Different Elasticities and Who Pays the Tax
a
0
8.00
9.00
Quantity of VCR Tapes
A
B
Q1
D1 S2
S1
Price (dollars)
Consumers payfull tax
Part (a)
$1 Tax
0
8.00
Quantity of VCR Tapes
AB
Q2
D1
$1 Tax
S2
S1
Price (dollars)
Producers payfull tax
Q1
Part (b)
Different Elasticities and Who Pays the Tax Different Elasticities and Who Pays the Tax
a
0
8.00
9.00
Quantity of VCR Tapes
A
B
Q1
D1 S2
S1
Price (dollars)
Consumers payfull tax
Part (a)
$1 Tax
0
8.00
Quantity of VCR Tapes
AB
Q2
D1
$1 Tax
S2
S1
Price (dollars)
Producers payfull tax
Q1
Part (b)
Summary
• Ed > Es producer bears most of the tax burden
• Ed < Es consumer bears most of the tax burden
• Ed = Es equally share the tax burden