10The following appeared in a letter to the editor of a Batavia newspaper."The department of agriculture in Batavia reports that the number of dairy farms throughout the country is now 25 percent greater than it was 10 years ago. During this same time period, however, the price of milk at the local Excello Food Market has increased from $1.50 to over $3.00 per gallon. To prevent farmers from continuing to receive excessive profits on an apparently increased supply of milk, the Batavia government should begin to regulate retail milk prices. Such regulation is necessary to ensure both lower prices and an adequate supply of milk for consumers."
提纲:超额利润和市场的需求与供给都有关系。获得超额利润是卖方市场,当买房需求是刚性时候,卖方提高价格而买方只能被动接受价格从而形成超额利润。牛奶厂数量增加了25%并不能说明牛奶的供应量明显提高。有可能每个农场的奶牛数量减少而总产量减少;又或者单头奶牛的奶产量减少而总产量减少。明显提高牛奶供应量也不一定能够获得超额利润。也许提高牛奶供应量大大超过了市场的需求而形成的是买方市场。也有可能提高牛奶供应量仍然不能满足市场需求,但消费者完全可以不消费牛奶。政府调整牛奶价格并不能保证牛奶价格不会过高。政府强行降低价格若低合理利润空间,则农民会采取不生产牛奶,从而不会有足够的牛奶消费并且对消费者利益产生损害。而高于合理利润空间则政策没有效果。市场价格上涨一倍并不一定是农场获得超额利润,也许是成本上升了 The author want the government set a policy that is to regulate retail milk prices in order to prevent framer from continuing receive excessive profit by apparently increasing supply of milk. But the author has not clearly figured out what are excessive profits and where it comes from. When the consumer has no alternative choice that they must buy some products and the demand exceed supply highly, the produce can increase the prices highly above the cost and get the excessive profits. Firstly, whether the framers get excessive profits is still worth to evaluate. The author mentioned that the department of agriculture in Batavia reported the number of dairy farms throughout the country was 25% greater than it was 10 years age. But this do not tell us the total supply of milk have increased. Maybe the number of cow per farm has decreased or the output of per cow has decreased. Secondly, apparently increasing the supply of milk has opposite effect to get excessive profits and helpful to decrease the prices of milk. Accord to the theory of price, the price will toward down if the supply excesses the demand. Thirdly, the prices increased from $1.50 to over $3.00 per gallon do not account for the reason the farmer get excessive profits either. Maybe the cost of per gallon milk has excess more than $3.00 and the farmer get none profits. Increase the supply of milk and prices at the same time have no relationship to get excessive profit, because increase the supply has negative effect while increase the prices has the positive effect to excessive profits.There are fault in the policy too. The author wants the government to regulate the retail milk prices and prevent the farmers get excessive profits. But if the regulated prices under the cost of milk, the farmer would stop produce milk and there would not enough milk in the market and if the consumers still need milk the prices will increase sharply after a while.If the government wants to make sure the consumer benefit first, they should let the market control the prices firstly and takes the domination. But the government has still do something that the market lacks power such as set the food safety laws.