Economics • International Trade

Import Quota Simulator

Demand, domestic supply, world supply and domestic supply plus the quota, with the price before and after the quota and the areas A, B, C and D shaded.

Import Quota Simulator — Explanation

A country imports a good it also makes. It can buy as much as it wants from abroad at the world price (Pw), so world supply (Sw) is a horizontal line at Pw. Domestic demand is Q = 100 − P and domestic supply is Q = P − 10: with no trade at all, the price would be $55 and 45 units would be sold.

An import quota limits imports to K units. The supply on offer is now domestic supply up to Pw, then K imported units at Pw, then domestic supply plus the quota (S + quota: domestic supply shifted K units to the right). The price rises until consumers buy exactly what domestic firms make plus K: Pq = 55 − K ÷ 2.

A quota and a tariff that raise the price by the same amount have the same areas A, B and D. The difference is area C: a tariff's goes to the government, a quota's to whoever holds the licences.

How to use it. Choose a scenario in the title bar to watch a quota being imposed on free trade at a world price of $25: the old supply curve and equilibrium (e0) stay on the diagram in grey and the new equilibrium (e1) appears. Or move the sliders to change the world price and the quota yourself. The table shows the size of each area in dollars.

Objective: analyse the effects of an import quota on domestic price, output, consumption, imports and economic welfare, and compare them with a tariff's, using a diagram (Cambridge International AS Level Economics: protectionism).

Where this fits

  • AP: AP Microeconomics
  • AQA: AQA A Level Economics (7136)
  • Cambridge: Cambridge IGCSE Economics (0455); Cambridge A Level Economics (9708); Cambridge AS Level Economics (9708) Goes beyond Cambridge IGCSE Economics (0455): 0455 doesn't use diagrams for protection; the consumer and producer surplus, revenue/rent and deadweight loss areas go beyond it.
  • IB: IB Economics HL; IB Economics SL
  • NCEA Level 2 Economics: 91223 Analyse international trade using economic concepts and models; 91227 Analyse how government policies and contemporary economic issues interact Goes beyond 91223: Quotas and welfare areas aren't in 91223 (they're Level 3, 91399); the price-taker model and the change in imports are.
  • NCEA Level 3 Economics: 91399 Demonstrate understanding of the efficiency of market equilibrium
  • Pearson Edexcel International: Edexcel International GCSE Economics (4EC1); Edexcel International A Level Economics Goes beyond Edexcel International GCSE Economics (4EC1): 4EC1 has no consumer or producer surplus, so the welfare areas and deadweight loss go beyond it.
  • USDP: USDP Economics Goes beyond USDP Economics: Welfare areas (consumer and producer surplus, deadweight loss) go beyond a typical high-school course.

Import Quota Simulator — Key Terms

Key concepts in English, with te reo Māori, Chinese (Simplified) and Korean.

EnglishTe reo Māori中文(简体)한국어What it means on this page
Import Quotamotunga进口配额 (jìnkǒu pèi'é)수입 할당제 (suip haldangje)A physical restriction on the maximum quantity of a foreign product allowed into a country over a specified timeframe.
Domestic Supply (S_dom)no attested term国内供给 (guónèi gōngjǐ)국내 공급 (guknae gonggeup)The quantity of a good that local domestic producers are willing and able to sell at various price levels.
World Price (Pw)no attested term世界价格 (shìjiè jiàgé)세계 가격 (segye gagyeok)The prevailing market price of a commodity in international trade before local protectionist barriers.
Local Equilibrium (No-Trade) Priceno attested term本地均衡价格 (běndì jūnhéng jiàgé)국내 균형 가격 (gungnae gyunhyeong gagyeok)The price where domestic demand meets domestic supply with no trade at all ($55 here): the price under an embargo.
Quota Price (P_q)no attested term配额后国内价格할당 후 국내 가격The elevated domestic market price resulting from restricting foreign supply via an import quota.
Non-binding Quotano attested term非约束性配额 (fēi yuēshùxìng pèi'é)비구속적 할당 (bigusokjeok haldang)An import quota at or above the quantity that would be imported under free trade, so it has no effect on price or quantity.
Embargono attested term禁运 (jìnyùn)금수 조치 (geumsu jochi)A complete ban on trade in a good: for imports, a quota of zero.
Quota Rent (Importer Profit)no attested term配额租金 (pèi'é zūjīn)쿼터 임대료 (kwoteo imdaeryo)The windfall profit earned by licence-holders who import goods at the cheap world price and resell at the higher quota price (Area C).
Deadweight Production Lossno attested term生产无谓损失 (Area B)생산 비효율 손실The loss of economic efficiency caused by replacing lower-cost foreign imports with higher-cost domestic production (Area B).
Deadweight Consumption Lossno attested term消费无谓损失 (Area D)소비 위축 손실The welfare lost because consumers buy less at the higher price a tariff or quota causes (Area D).
Deadweight Welfare Lossno attested term福利无谓损失 (fúlì wúwèi sǔnshī)사회후생 손실 (sahoe husaeng sonsil)The welfare lost to everyone because of the quota, gained by nobody: areas B + D.
Consumer Surplus (CS)no attested term消费者剩余 (xiāofèizhě shèngyú)소비자 잉여 (sobija ingyeo)The economic gain to consumers measured by the difference between what they are willing to pay and the market price.
Producer Surplus (PS)no attested term生产者剩余 (shēngchǎnzhě shèngyú)생산자 잉여 (saengsanja ingyeo)The economic gain to local producers measured by the difference between the market price and their production cost.
Protectionismpākaihoko贸易保护主义 (màoyì bǎohù zhǔyì)무역 보호주의 (muyeok bohojuyi)Government policy aimed at shielding domestic industries from foreign competition through quotas or tariffs.

On the te reo Māori column. Terms marked as gaps have no attested equivalent in the sources checked — Karaitiana Taiuru's Dictionary of Māori Computer and Social Media Terms, Paekupu, the Reserve Bank's te reo financial glossary, NZQA and Te Aka. No coinage is printed as though it were established; where a class needs one, commission it from Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori and credit the translator. Te reo Māori is not italicised and takes no plural "s".