Which factor would cause a shift in the supply curve?

• A. Price along curve
• B. Demand
• C. Quantity demanded
• D. Technology

Answer: (D)

Shifts in the supply curve occur when a non-price determinant changes how much producers are willing to supply at every price. Technology fits that description: when new technology makes production cheaper or more efficient, firms can produce more for the same cost, so the entire supply curve moves to the right. In other words, at each price level, more is supplied because production has become easier or cheaper.

The other factors described involve movements along the curve or affect the demand side. A price change causes a movement along the current supply curve, not a shift. A change in demand shifts the demand curve, not the supply curve. Quantity demanded is a single point on the demand curve at a given price, not a determinant that shifts supply. So technology is the factor that would shift the supply curve.