They tried price controls in the 1970's. It led to lines at gas stations, shortages, and rationing. Price controls are always either a no-op (if supply meets

They tried price controls in the 1970's. It led to lines at gas stations, shortages, and rationing. Price controls are always either a no-op (if supply meets demand below the mandated price), or lead to shortages. For the good and simple reason that, if there's 100 units of X and people want 120 units, you have to have some algorithm to decide who doesn't get as much X as they want. With no price controls, businesses see X is selling quickly and raise the price (hopefully before the inventory hits zero all along the supply chain). Long-term, the high price encourages suppliers to produce more; the price provides a feedback signal that says "make more of this." With price controls, that doesn't happen. The product simply sells out because there's not enough to go around, and the 20 unlucky people who don't get their X are whoever happens to walk into the store when the shelves are empty, or are at the back of the line when a shipment comes in.