Shift and Movement in the Demand vs the Supply Curves - Essay Example

Movement in the demand curve is caused by the variation in commodity prices. See below for a graphical explanation (Tucker, 67-75).

In the above graph, DD is the demand curve. When the commodity prices decrease from P1 to P2, the quantity demanded by customers increases from Q1 to Q2, which is represented by a movement in the demand curve from point A to B. On the other hand, a shift in the demand curve is brought about by the changes in other factors affecting demand other than the price. They are taste, level of income, and others. In the graph below, DD is the demand curve before any change. When the mentioned factors cause the demand to increase, the DD shifts to the right from DD to D1D1. The quantity demanded at P1 increases from Q1 to Q2 as shown in the graph below (Tucker, 67-75).

In economics, supply is the number of goods and services that suppliers are willing and able to supply to the market at a given price and time, ceteris paribus. Therefore, the supply curve represents the association between the quantity supplied and the prevailing market prices. In the graph below, SS is the supply curve. When commodity prices increase from P1 to P2, the quantity supplied increases from Q1 to Q2 and the movement along the supply curve is from point A to B (Tucker, 67-75).

A shift in the supply curve is caused by factors other than price. They are the prices of factors of production among others. When the factors of production are cheaper, the quantity supplied increases leading to a shift in the demand curve from SS to S1S1. See the graph below (Tucker, 67-75).