1. 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.

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

3. 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

4. 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

5. 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