Supply and Demand

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Different market decisions determine how an economy is run. There are several different factors that account for how markets make their decisions, which determines how they function. The theory of markets mostly depends on supply and demand. However, it is key to note that there is a difference in demand/supply and quantity demanded/supplied. A demand is how much the buyer plans to purchase at various markets prices and the quantity demanded is what the buyer actually purchases at a particular price. Supply is the producer or the seller’s plan of the amount the seller will make available at different market prices and the quantity supplied is the actual amount that the seller makes available at a particular market price. It is important to differentiate between supply/demand and quantity supplied/demanded and not assume they are the same thing. A surplus is when the quantity supplied is greater than the quantity demanded at a specific price. A shortage is when the quantity demanded exceeds the quantity supplied at a specific price. All of these key terms play a significant role in the theory of markets and how markets make decisions. The features of a market can be seen in real world situations: lab methods to pick gender, opportunity to buy wine online, a shortage of the iPhone 4S, a surplus of chicken for farmers and gluten-free grocery stores, all of which will be discussed in the next few paragraphs. The demand is one essential factor in a market system; if there is a demand a producer will supply a buyer’s demand and both sides are content. The buyer gets what they want and the supplier makes a profit. More recently, there has been an increase in demand to pick the gender of a child before pregnancy and people are satisfyi... ... middle of paper ... ...line-WSJ.com.” Wall Street Journal. Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj.com, October 15, 2011, accessed October 23, 2011, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203499704576624891779371806.html?mod=WSJ_LifeStyle_Lifestyle_5. Tomson, Bill, “As Chicken Prices Rise for Consumers, U.S. Steps in to Help Farmers- WSJ.com.” Wall Street Journal. Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj. August 18, 2011, accessed November 5, 2011, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903596904576516560956498024.html?KEYWORDS=surplus. Troianovski, Anton, “Sprint Jumps Into iPhone Frenzy- WSJ.com.” Wall Street Journal. Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj. October 15, 2011, accessed October 21, 2011, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204002304576629413133310144.html?KEYWORDS=iphone+4s.

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