Friday, June 06, 2008

Elasticity of Cigarettes


A column on Indystar.com reports that as the price of cigarettes increase by a Pigouvian tax, sales have dropped. I crudely calculate the elasticity at 1.16 or elastic. The tax shrinks both the consumers and producers surplus to correct an externality. As Lord Keynes said, "Practical men are usually the slaves of some defunct economist."

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