Which statement best explains how weather can act as a shifter of the supply curve for an agricultural product like oranges?

• A. Bad weather (e.g., a frost) can reduce crop yields, decreasing supply and shifting the supply curve left at every price.
• B. Bad weather increases production efficiency, increasing supply and shifting the supply curve right at every price.
• C. Bad weather reduces consumers’ willingness to buy oranges, decreasing demand and shifting the demand curve left.
• D. Bad weather causes a movement up along the existing supply curve because price rises while all nonprice determinants of supply remain unchanged.

Answer: (A)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand that the supply curve represents the relationship between the price of a good and the quantity producers are willing to supply, holding all other factors constant.
2. Recognize that a 'shifter' of the supply curve refers to any factor other than price that changes the quantity supplied at every price, causing the entire supply curve to shift left or right.
3. Analyze how weather affects agricultural production: bad weather, such as frost, can damage crops and reduce the total output farmers can produce, which means less quantity supplied at every price.
4. Conclude that this reduction in crop yields due to bad weather decreases supply, causing the supply curve to shift to the left (a decrease in supply).
5. Note that this is different from a movement along the supply curve, which happens only when the price changes and all other factors remain constant.