Demand

The demand for a commodity is defined as a schedule of the quantities that buyers would be willing and able to purchase at various possible prices per unit of time. The unit of time refers to a year, month, week, and so on. It should also be understood that demand is not the same thing as desire or need. A ‘desire’ becomes ‘demand’ only when it is backed up by the ability and willingness to satisfy it.

Demand Schedule

An individual’s demand schedule is a list of various quantities of a commodity, which an individual consumer purchases at different (alternative) prices in the market at a given time. The demand schedule, thus, states the relationship between the quantity demanded of a commodity and its price. In a market, there are a number of consumers each with his own demand schedule, showing the different quantities of the commodity that he will purchase at different prices. The market demand schedule can be obtained in two ways. First, by adding up the demand schedules of all the consumers in the market. Second, by taking the demand schedule of the representative consumer and multiplying it by the total number of consumers in the market.

Demand Schedule for Rice in Tiruchirappalli Market

Price of rice (Rs/qt1)                Quantity of Rice Demanded (tonnes per month)

950                                                      5000

900                                                      5100

850                                                       5200

800                                                       5300

750                                                      5400

700                                                       5500