What term describes a situation where a large price change leads to a small change in sales?

In the context of economics, the term that accurately describes a situation where a large price change results in a relatively small change in the quantity of goods sold is price inelasticity. Price inelasticity refers to a situation in which consumers' demand for a product remains relatively stable despite significant fluctuations in price. This typically occurs for necessities or products with few substitutes, meaning that consumers are less responsive to price changes.

For instance, if the price of essential medications increases significantly, people may still purchase nearly the same amount because they rely on these products, indicating inelastic demand. The concept of price inelasticity is crucial for businesses and economists as it helps to gauge how changes in pricing might affect total revenue and consumer behavior.

The alternative options focus on related but distinct concepts. Price elasticity generally describes the overall responsiveness of demand to price changes without specifying whether it's elastic or inelastic. Demand elasticity similarly refers to the sensitivity of demand concerning changes in factors like price but does not provide the explicit context of being insensitive to large price changes. The consumer preference curve describes how consumer preferences relate to different combinations of products, which does not specifically address the relationship between price changes and sales volume.