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Visit the nearby vegetable market and try to find answers to the following questions. a. Who decides the prices of different vegetables in the vegetable market? b. Sometimes the prices of a few vegetables is too high, and sometimes too low. Why is this? c. The price of tomatoes is high in the morning and eventually gets lower by the evening. Have you ever noticed this? Comment.
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Sample answer (your market visit may differ):
- a. Who decides the prices? No single person. Prices are set by the interaction of buyers (demand) and sellers (supply). Sellers start from what they paid at the wholesale market, then adjust to how many buyers come.
- b. Why are prices sometimes too high and sometimes too low?
| Situation | Supply | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Good harvest, many trucks arrive | High | Low |
| Heavy rain or heat damages the crop | Low | High |
| Festival or wedding season | Demand high | High |
- c. Why are tomatoes costly in the morning and cheaper by evening? In the morning, the stock is fresh and many buyers come, so the price is high. Vegetables spoil quickly - by evening, sellers want to sell the leftover stock before it goes bad. This leftover stock is a surplus, so sellers cut the price.
