Consumer Goods

In economics, consumer goods are new items intended for sale to consumers. Consumer goods are thus distinguished from capital goods, such as machinery, office space, and raw materials like lumber and iron ore. In economic statistics, the resale of used consumer goods from one consumer to another is generally not counted in sales statistics so that the statistics properly reflect production. One major exception is housing. A home is of course a consumer good, and existing home sales are tracked. Consumer goods can be further classified as consumer durables, and consumables (sometimes called non-durables). Consumer durables are those consumer goods, such as cars, designed to last three years or more. Consumer goods can also be classified as normal goods or inferior goods. Inferior goods, generally the exception, are those consumer goods for which demand falls as income rises. Among consumer goods, public transportation is recognized as an example of an inferior good.