--%>
Assignment Help - homework help

Income Elasticities of Demand

Question:

(a)  Suppose the income elasticity of demand for pre-recorded music compact disks is +4 and the income elasticity of demand for a cabinet maker's work is +0.4.  Compare the impact on pre-recorded music compact disks and the cabinet maker's work of a recession that reduces consumer incomes by 10 per cent.

(b)  How might you determine whether the pre-recorded music compact discs and MP3 music players are in competition with each other?

(c)   Interpret the following Income Elasticities of Demand (YED) values for the following and state if the good is normal or inferior; YED= +0.5 and YED= -2.5

(d)   Interpret the following Cross-Price Elasticities of Demand (XED) and explain the relationship between these goods. XED= + 0.64 and XED= -2.6

Answer:

a) A positive elasticity means that an increase in income will lead to an increase in the consumption and fall in income will lead to a fall in consumption. If the income of the consumer declines by 10%, then there will be a 40% (4 x 10) fall in the consumption of pre-recorded music CDs and 4%(10 x 0.4) decline in the demand of cabinet maker's work.

b) This can be determined by the cross elastic of the two goods. If the cross elasticity of demand is negative then the goods will be complements to each other and hence they will not be in competition. However, if the cross elasticity of demand is positive then the goods are substitutes and they are in competition.

c) For first good the income elasticity of demand is 0.5 which means that if income increases by 1% then the demand will increase by 0.5%. This makes the food a normal good.

For the second good, the income elasticity of demand is -2.5, which means that an increase in income by 1% will lead to a fall in demand by -2.5%. This means that the good is inferior good.

d) A positive elasticity means that increase in price of one good leads to an increase in demand of the other good. This is the case of substitute goods.

A negative cross elasticity of demand, on the other hand, means that an increase in price of one good leads to a decrease in the demand for the other good. This happens in the case of complements.

   Related Questions in Microeconomics

  • Q : Price of input influencing goods supply

    Elucidate how does change in price of input influence the supply of a good.

    		•
  • Q : Monopolistic competition in long run

    When this firm initially had important market power along with potential long-run economic profit, a likely cause of the firm finally being in a stable equilibrium of an $18 price and output of 5,000 units every day would be:  (1

    		•
  • Q : Possibility of price discrimination

    Price discrimination is not possible when: (w) arbitrage is impossible. (x) all consumers have identical demand curves for the good. (y) firms are not price takers. (z) products are differentiated. Please choose th

    		•
  • Q : Limitation of economies capacity I have

    I have a problem in economics on Production Possibilities Frontiers. Please help me in determining the right answer from the following question. The economy’s capacity to generate/make is NOT limited by the: (i) Amount of resources accessible. (

    		•
  • Q : Experiencing Absolute Poverty When the

    When the minimum amounts of food, clothing and shelter essential for survival absorb all of a family’s income, in that case the family is experiencing: (w) relative poverty. (x) economic shock. (y) financial destitution. (z) absolute poverty.

    		•
  • Q : Demand curves relatively more elastic

    Scrutiny of demand curves DD and D0D0 reveals such that: (1) D0D0 is relatively more elastic at a price of P1. (2) DD is relatively more elastic at a price of P2. (3) D0D0 probably reflects the demand f

    		•
  • Q : Discrimination problem When racial or

    When racial or personal or sex discrimination decreases worker’s mobility across the occupations: (1) Workers will be completely compensated for their opportunity costs. (2) Economic rent is more probable to be earned by such who are not discriminated against. (

    		•
  • Q : Corollary of the law of equal marginal

    The corollary of the law of equal marginal benefit is the principle of: (1) Equal marginal utilities per dollar. (2) Diminishing marginal utility. (3) Income injection. (4) Substitution in demand. (5) Diminishing returns. Can someo

    		•
  • Q : Monopoly competition and perfect

    Write down the differentiations between monopoly competition and perfect competition?

    		•
  • Q : Featherbedding in its hiring practices

    The summation of monopolistic exploitation across all the workers tends to raise however a firm as well operates at a more socially and economically proficient level of output and employment whenever the firm is capable to engage in: (1) Blacklisting in its dealings t

    		•