"There is much to be said for markets. When working efficiently they engender competition thus forcing producers to pass on value to consumers. A good illustration is the Pakistani mobile phone market, perhaps one of the most competitive in the world. Despite the many virtues of markets, however, it is not necessary that they serve everyone all the time.
The reasoning is simple. Markets are blind and allocate on the basis of effective demand, i.e. demand backed up by purchasing power. Thus, if Demi Moore, say, wishes to take a milk bath every day, the market will ensure delivery of sufficient milk to her, even if it means that 100 African children, who cannot afford the price, go without a drop.
Amartya Sen who won a Nobel Prize in economics pointed out how many of the world’s worst famines were actually caused by unfettered market forces."
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