Everything about Ration totally explained
Rationing is the controlled distribution of resources and
scarce goods or services. Rationing controls the size of the ration, one's allotted portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time.
In economics
In
economics, it's often common to use the word "rationing" to refer to one of the roles that prices play in
markets, while rationing (as the word is usually used) is called "non-price rationing." Using prices to ration means that those with the most money (or other assets) and who want a product the most are first to receive it. Such rationing happens daily in a market economy. Non-price rationing follows other principles of distribution. Below, we discuss only the latter, dropping the "non-price" qualifier, to refer only to marketing done by an authority of some sort (often the government).
In market
economics, rationing artificially restricts demand. It is done to keep price below the equilibrium (
market-clearing) price determined by the process of
supply and demand in an
unfettered market. Thus, rationing can be complementary to
price controls. An example of rationing in the face of rising prices took place in the
Netherlands, where there was rationing of gasoline in the
1973 energy crisis.
A reason for setting the price lower than would clear the market may be that there's a shortage, which would drive the market price very high. High prices, especially in the case of necessities, are unacceptable with regard to those who can't afford them. Traditionalist economists argue, however, that high prices act to reduce waste of the scarce resource while also providing incentive to produce more (this approach requires assuming no
horizontal inequality).
In wartime, it's usually imperative for a government to maintain the support of this part of the population, to maintain "equality" especially since in most countries, the working-class and poor families contribute most of the soldiers.
Rationing using coupons is only one kind of non-price rationing. For example,
scarce products can be rationed using queues. This is seen, for example, at
amusement parks, where one pays a price to get in and then need not pay any price to go on the rides. Similarly, in the absence of
road pricing, access to roads is rationed in a
first come, first serve queueing process, leading to
congestion.
Authorities which introduce rationing often have to deal with the rationed goods being sold illegally on the
black market.
Credit rationing
The concept in
economics and
banking of
credit rationing describes the situation when a bank limits the
supply of loans, although it has enough funds to loan out, and the supply of loans hasn't yet equalled the
demand of prospective borrowers. Changing the price of the loans (interest rate) doesn't equilibrate the demand and supply of the loans. The bank finds that raising the interest rate beyond a certain level actually reduces its profitability.
Joseph E. Stiglitz and Andrew Weiss's 1981 paper was one of the early papers to explain why the bank (or any lending institution for that matter) may credit ration its borrower if 1) the bank was unable to perfectly distinguish the risky borrowers from the safe ones 2) the loan contracts were subject to limited liability (if projects returns were less than the debt obligation, the borrower bears no responsibility to pay out her pocket).
Raising the interest rate may cause
adverse selection which would lead to increases in the number of 'risky' borrowers in the pool of aspiring borrowers. With higher debt obligations (due to higher interest rate) only the risky borrowers with higher returns would be ready to take up the banks contract. Recall, that with limited liability, the borrowers repay the loan if successful, but escape the consequence of failure of the project. Thus, only borrowers with riskier projects would be ready to take high interest rate loans. Thus, raising the interest rate increases the proportion of the risky borrowers in the project and reduces the overall profitability of the bank.
Military rationing
Rationing has long been used in the
military, especially the
navy, to make supplies last for a defined duration, such as a voyage. To ration the supplies, they're divided up into equal portions for each person for each day, or even a meal, over the expected voyage period.
Civilian rationing
Rationing is often instituted during wartime for civilians as well. For example, each person may be given "ration coupons" allowing him or her to purchase a certain amount of a product each month. Rationing often includes
food and other necessities for which there's a shortage, including materials needed for the war effort such as
rubber tires,
leather shoes,
clothing and
gasoline.
Towards the end of the
First World War,
panic buying in the
United Kingdom prompted rationing of first
sugar, then
meat, for the rest of the war. During
World War II rationing existed in many countries including the
United Kingdom and the
United States.
Civilian peace time rationing of food may also occur, especially after natural disasters, during contingencies, or even after failed governmental economic policies regarding production or distribution, the latter happening especially in highly centralized
planned economies. Examples of these situations include
North Korea,
China during the 1970s and 1980s,
Communist Romania during the 1980's, the
Soviet Union in 1990-1991, and
Cuba today. This led to
rationing in the Soviet Union, Rationing in Communist Romania, rationing in North Korea,
rationing in Cuba, and
austerity in Israel.
United States
A gasoline rationing system was put in place in the United States. Gasoline shortages were especially acute in the Eastern states, because in the early
Forties, most petroleum was carried by tanker. This conveyance became dangerous with U-Boats operating off the US coast. Accordingly, until the
Big Inch and
Little Big Inch pipelines started pumping petroleum from East Texas to the northeast states
, gas supplies in the East were tight. A national speed limit of 35 miles per hour was imposed to save fuel and tires. Depending on need, civilians were issued one of a number of different classifications of gas cards, entitling them to different quantities of gasoline each week. When purchasing gas, one had to present a gas card along with a ration book. Coupons were made valid for only a set period, to forestall hoarding.
To get a classification and rationing stamps, one had to appear before a local board to certify a need for gas and ownership of no more than five tires. All tires in excess of five per driver were confiscated by the government, because of rubber shortages. An A card was the lowest priority of gas rationing and entitled the holder to 3 to 4 gallons of gas per week. B cards were issued to workers in the military industry, entitling their holder up to 8 gallons of gas per week. C cards were granted to persons deemed very essential to the war effort, such as doctors. T rations were made available for truckers. Lastly, X cards entitled the holder to unlimited supplies and were the highest priority in the system. Ministers of Religion, police, volunteer firemen, and civil defense workers fell within this category. A scandal erupted when 200
Congressmen received these cards.
Ration Book No. 3 circa 1943, front
Image:WWII_USA_Ration_Book_3_Back.jpg|Back of ration book
Image:WWII_USA_Ration_Stamps_1.jpg|Fighter plane ration stamp
Image:WWII_USA_Ration_Stamps_2.jpg|Artillery ration stamp
Image:WWII_USA_Ration_Stamps_3.jpg|Tank ration stamp
Image:WWII_USA_Ration_Stamps_4.jpg|Aircraft Carrier ration stamp
United Kingdom
The British
Ministry of Food refined the rationing process in the early
1940s to ensure the population didn't starve when food imports were severely restricted and local production limited due to the large number of men fighting the war. Rationing didn't end in the United Kingdom until the
1950s – see also
Rationing in the United Kingdom during and after World War II.
Europe
Another form of rationing that was employed during
World War II, called
Ration Stamps. These were redeemable stamps or coupons. Every family was issued a set number of each kind of stamp based on the size of the family, ages of children and income. This allowed the Allies and mainly America to supply huge amounts of food to the troops and later provided a surplus to aid in the rebuilding of Europe with aid to Germany after food supplies were destroyed.
Emergency rationing
Rationing of food and water may become necessary during an emergency, such as a
natural disaster or
terror attack. The
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has established guidelines for civilians on rationing food and water supplies when replacements are not available. According to FEMA standards, every person should have a minimum of one quart per day of water, and more for children, nursing mothers, and the ill. Water shouldn't be rationed in an emergency. Food, on the other hand, can be rationed for many days.
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