Suppose Jenny's marginal utility of fish is 40 and her marginal utility from chips is 20. The price of fish is $10 and the price of chips is $1. What should Jenny do to maximize her utility? Explain your answer

What will be an ideal response?


Jenny should buy more chips and fewer fish. Her marginal utility per dollar from chips is 20 and her marginal utility per dollar from fish is 4. If Jenny decreases her purchases of fish by $1, she loses 4 units of utility. But if she spends the dollar on chips, she gains 20 units of utility. Because her gain in utility exceeds her loss, Jenny's total utility increases as she buys more chips and fewer fish.

Economics

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