Homework answers / question archive / Discussion Topic The purpose of this discussion is to think about what has happened to supply and demand in a market that has been disrupted by the pandemic

Discussion Topic The purpose of this discussion is to think about what has happened to supply and demand in a market that has been disrupted by the pandemic

Economics

Share With

Discussion Topic

The purpose of this discussion is to think about what has happened to supply and demand in a market that has been disrupted by the pandemic. For some goods and services there has been excess demand (masks, toilet paper) or excess supply (milk) which has lead to shortages or surpluses, respectively, and a deviation from the usual market equilibrium price set by the intersection of supply and demand.
Good sources for data on price changes are Bureau of Labor and Statistics  (Links to an external site.)and the Bloomberg commodities website (Links to an external site.) but you can also Google specific price changes. Please contact me if you are having trouble finding data on your product.  
 

Instructions

Given what you have learned in module 3 , please share your answers to the following questions and then respond to at least two other students.  I do not expect that you will have the "right" answer to any of these and indeed there is not always a "right" answer. I just want to see that you have thought about these issues using the tools we have learned so far. 

• Select a good or service for which the price has changed due to the pandemic and do some research to see how price has changed.
• Explain is the price change has been due to changes in supply or demand or both.
• Should the government do something about the changes in prices to try to help and if so, what? Use concepts such as consumer, producer and social surplus.
• What would you predict will happen if the government intervenes?
• What might be a better policy to address the underlying issues in this market?