Producers & Consumers
What is a producer?
Someone who makes a good or provides a service, such as a farmer, factory worker, or mechanic.
What does the word scarcity mean?
Not having enough of something that people need or want.
What is interdependence?
When communities, states, or countries mutually rely on each other to get the goods and services they need.
What is supply?
The amount of a product or service that is available for consumers to buy.
What is a consumer?
A person who buys or uses goods and services to meet their needs and wants.
What is opportunity cost?
The value of the item or choice you give up when you choose to buy or do something else.
What is the difference between an import and an export?
An import is a good brought in from another country, while an export is a good sent to another country to be sold.
What is demand?
The amount of a product or service that people actually want or need.
Can a person be both a producer and a consumer at the same time?
Yes, because a worker who produces a good or service also buys goods and services, like groceries or haircuts, in their daily life.
How can a lack of rain affect a local economy beyond just farming?
It can harm tourism at lakes and rivers, lower sales at gas stations and hotels, and make it harder for water-reliant power plants to generate electricity.
How does specialization lead to trade between states or nations?
Areas focus on making what they can produce best using their unique resources, then trade those goods for things they cannot produce themselves.
What happens to prices when there is a surplus of a product?
Prices usually go down because there is more supply than people want to buy.
What usually happens to the price of a product if consumers stop buying it because it costs too much?
Producers may lower the price to get more sales.
If you have $20 and choose to buy a book instead of going to the movies, what is the opportunity cost?
The movie you didn't see.
Why is car manufacturing in Michigan a good example of interdependence?
Michigan car factories rely on parts made in other states—like tires from Ohio, airbags from Utah, and transmissions from South Carolina—to build a single automobile.
How do you calculate profit?
Profit is the difference between the total money earned from selling something and the total money spent to make or supply it.
What can cause a company to raise the price of a product it makes, like bicycles?
A shortage of materials (like metal) needed to make it, or high demand from consumers.
What must families do when necessary goods and services become scarce?
They have to make difficult choices about what they need most and prioritize how they spend their money.
What natural resources in Illinois help support its agricultural economy?
Rich soil and an ideal climate (along with coal, petroleum, and timber).
If a carpenter spends $100 on supplies to build a chair and sells it for $150, how much profit did they make?
$50