Market run
Purchasing spree caused by an anticipated shortage
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A market run or run on the market occurs when consumers increase purchasing of a particular product because they fear a shortage. As a market run progresses, it generates its own momentum: as more people demand the item, the supply line becomes unable to keep up. This causes a local shortage, which in turn encourages further hoarding.
Examples include a run on the gasoline market following hurricane Katrina in 2005, an ammunition shortage following President Obama's election in 2008,[1] and a run on toilet paper following a Johnny Carson joke on The Tonight Show in 1973.[2][3][4]
Relationship to panic buying
The phenomenon described as a market run is closely related to the well-studied economic behaviour known as panic buying, in which consumers purchase unusually large quantities of goods in anticipation of a shortage or crisis. In economics, panic buying refers to a rapid surge in demand driven by fear of future scarcity, often exacerbated by social influence and media reporting, which can itself create or worsen shortages.[5]
Academic analyses describe panic buying as a response to anticipated supply disruptions, where consumers attempt to acquire essential goods before they become unavailable, leading to temporary shortages and stockouts even in well-supplied markets. Such behaviour has been observed across diverse contexts including health emergencies, natural disasters, and supply chain disruptions, and can generate self-fulfilling shortages when consumer actions outpace supply capacity.[6]
