SS5E3 The student will describe how consumers and businesses interact in the United States economy across time. a. Describe how competition, markets, and prices influence people’s behavior.

Three factors that influence how and what people purchase are: -competition -markets -prices

Competition Competition is when more than one person wants the same thing (a certain job, or a product for example) During the Civil War, food shortages created competition among Southerners who wanted to purchase food

Markets The sale and purchase transactions that affect the price of some good or service. Markets change: The price of cotton before the Civil War was much lower than it was during the war because of shortages in production and labor

Prices The price of something is the amount someone pays for a product or service In many cases, shortages of supplies caused prices to increase during the Civil War Product 1861 1865 Flour (barrel) $6 $1,000 Coffee (pound) $.35 $60 Butter (pound) $.20 $20 Bacon (pound) $.12 $13