Question

Consider two markets: the market for cat food and the market for dog food. The initial equilibrium for both markets is the same, the equilibrium price is $1.50 , and the equilibrium quantity is 21.0 . When the price is $8.75 , the quantity supplied of cat food is 57.0 and the quantity supplied of dog food is 107.0 . For simplicity of analysis, the demand for both goods is the same. Using the midpoint formula, calculate the elasticity of supply for dog food. Please round to two decimal places.

Answer 1

Elasticity of supply for dog food = 0.95

Step-by-step explanation:

From the question, we have:

New quantity supplied of dog food = 107.0

Old quantity supplied of dog food = Initial equilibrium quantity = 21.0

New price = $8.75

Old price = Initial equilibrium price = $1.50

Generally, the formula for calculating the elasticity of supply is as

follows:

Elasticity of supply = Percentage change in quantity supplied / Percentage change in price ................ (1)

Where, based on the midpoint formula, we have:

Percentage change in quantity supplied of dog food = {(New quantity supplied of dog food - Old quantity supplied of dog food) / [(New quantity supplied of dog food + Old quantity supplied of dog food) / 2]} * 100 = {(107.0 - 21.0) / [(107.0 + 21.0) / 2]} * 100 = 134.375%

Percentage change in price = {(New price - Old price) / [(New price + Old price) / 2]} * 100 = {(8.75 - 1.50) / [(8.75 + 1.50) / 2]} * 100 = 141.463414634146%

Substituting the values into equation (1), we have:

Elasticity of supply for dog food = 134.375% / 141.463414634146% = 0.94989224137931

Approximated to 2 decimal places, we have:

Elasticity of supply for dog food = 0.95