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Q
TU
Py
Px
X
Y
Y P X P I y x
Consumer equilibrium
Represents that combination of goods purchases that
maximizes utility subject to the budget constraint
Geometrically, the equilibrium can be described as
that combination of goods corresponding to the point
at which the budget line is just tangent to the highest
attainable indifference curve in the consumers
indifference map
MUy
MUx
ratio on substituti
Py
Px
Indifference analysis
A
TU=7
TU=4
TU=5
TU=1
TU=2
B
DERIVING THE DEMAND CURVE
Kept other things constant, when the price of X has increased, it will mean that
the less of that product you can afford with your income
graphically it means the change of the budget line slope it becomes
steeper and therefore will touch different indifference curve (representing lower
level of utility) each price corresponds other optimal point and therefore
different quantity of good demanded, in that way we can construct the demand
curve (individual)
CONSUMER SURPLUS
= the gap between the total utility of a good and its total
market value
The surplus arises because we receive more than
we pay for, it is rooted in the law of diminishing
marginal utility
we pay for each unit what the last unit is worth but
by the law of diminishing marginal utility the earlier
units are worth more to us than the last thus, we
enjoy a surplus of utility on each of these earlier units
Consumer surplus
Q
S
Q
0
RZ
D=MU
P
0
P
Tasks:
1. Can be TU positive and MU negative at the same time? Draw graphs and explain.
2. Knowing following dates:
a) Draw the graphs of TU and MU curves.
b) Calculate, how high consumer surplus youll get, when the market price of good is 8
Eur and decide, how many units you will consume.
3. Px = 120 Eur and Py = 80 Eur. Graphically show, what will happen when Px has
increased by 18 Eur and at the same time Py by 12 Eur. Use the tools of
indifference analysis.
4. Your function of TU is: TU = 10X X
2
. (where X is quantity of good consumed per
week).
a) Write the equation of MU and decide, at what level of consumption start TU decrease?
b) Derive and draw TU and MU curves.
c) Assume Px = 6 Eur. By what level of consumption of good X will household maximize
its utility, knowing, that the ratio MU/P for all other goods = 1)?
Q 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
TU 20 36 48 56 60 60 58