Price Determination | 价格决定

📚 Price Determination | 价格决定

In a market economy, prices are not set by government decree or by individual businesses acting alone; they emerge from the interaction of millions of buyers and sellers. Price determination is the process by which the forces of demand and supply work together to establish a price that both consumers and producers accept in a competitive market. This is a core concept in the Cambridge IGCSE Economics syllabus, and mastering it is essential for understanding how markets allocate scarce resources.

在市场经济中，价格并非由政府法令或个别企业单独决定，而是源于无数买家和卖家的互动。价格决定就是需求与供给两种力量共同作用，在竞争性市场中形成一个消费者和生产者都能接受的价格的过程。这是剑桥 IGCSE 经济学课程的核心概念，掌握它对于理解市场如何配置稀缺资源至关重要。

1. The Foundation: Demand | 基础：需求

Demand is the quantity of a good or service that consumers are willing and able to buy at each possible price over a given period of time. ‘Willing’ means the consumer has a desire for the product, while ‘able’ means they have the purchasing power to afford it. Effective demand requires both conditions to be met simultaneously.

需求是指在某一特定时期内，消费者在每个可能的价格水平上愿意并且能够购买的商品或服务数量。”愿意”意味着消费者对产品有欲望，”能够”意味着他们拥有支付能力。有效需求必须同时满足这两项条件。

The law of demand states that there is an inverse relationship between price and quantity demanded, ceteris paribus. When price rises, quantity demanded falls; when price falls, quantity demanded rises. This is because at higher prices the opportunity cost of buying the good increases, so consumers switch to substitutes or reduce their consumption.

需求定律指出，在其他条件不变（ceteris paribus）的情况下，价格与需求量之间呈反比关系。价格上升，需求量下降；价格下降，需求量上升。这是因为在较高价格下购买商品的机会成本上升，消费者会转而购买替代品或减少消费。

A demand schedule can be presented as a table; for example:

需求表可以用表格形式来呈现，例如：

When plotted, the demand curve slopes downward from left to right, showing the inverse relationship between price and quantity demanded. Each point on the curve corresponds to the quantity demanded at a particular price.

将上述数据绘制成图后，需求曲线自左向右向下倾斜，体现出价格与需求量之间的反比关系。曲线上的每一个点都对应某一特定价格下的需求量。

2. The Other Half: Supply | 另一半：供给

Supply is the quantity of a good or service that producers are willing and able to sell at each possible price over a given period of time. The law of supply states that, ceteris paribus, there is a direct relationship between price and quantity supplied. Higher prices create a stronger incentive for firms to produce and sell because they can earn higher revenue; therefore quantity supplied rises as price rises.

供给是指在某一特定时期内，生产者在每个可能的价格水平上愿意并且能够出售的商品或服务数量。供给定律指出，在其他条件不变的条件下，价格与供给量之间呈正向关系。较高的价格为厂商提供了更强的生产和销售激励，因为能带来更高的收入，因此价格上升时供给量也随之上升。

A supply schedule might look like this:

供给表可以如下所示：

When plotted, the supply curve slopes upward from left to right, reflecting the direct relationship between price and quantity supplied.

将数据绘制成图后，供给曲线自左向右向上倾斜，反映出

Published by TutorHao | IGCSE Economics Revision Series | aleveler.com

更多咨询请联系16621398022（同微信）