The PPC can shift or rotate when the factors on which it depends changes. It can happen when there is either a change in resources or technology or both.
Shift in the PPC
The PPC can shift forward (towards right) as well as backwards (towards left). This can happen when either there is a change in resources or technology or both.
When the nation’s resources increase, that means it can increase the production of both the goods, thus leading to a shift in the PPC forward or towards right.
In the same way, when the nation’s resources decrease,
that means it has now less resources for the production of goods, thus leading
to a shift in the PPC backwards or towards left. In the diagram, the PPC ab
shifts backward to a2b2 when there is a decrease in
resources in the nation leading to a decrease in the production of both rice and wheat.
When the technology in the nation improves in such a
way that it increases the production of both the goods, then also the PPC
shifts forward.
Rotation of PPC
Rotation in the PPC may occur when the production of
any one good increase or decreases while that of the other remains the same. This
can happen when the technology for the production of one of the goods improves while
that of the other remains the same. For example, high production seeds for the
production of wheat will increase the production of wheat rotating the PPC outwards
while production of rice remains the same.
Similarly, high production seeds for the production of
rice will increase the production of rice rotating the PPC outwards while
production of wheat remains the same.
- When there is an increase in the nation’s resources, the PPC shifts forward or towards right.
- When the technology for the production of one of the goods improves while that of the other remains the same, the PPC rotates towards that good whose technology has improved.