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  • Substitution vs. Tangency Methods for Constrained Optimization

Economic Intuition of the Tangency Condition

A consumer is choosing their optimal consumption bundle of two goods. The tangency method identifies the optimum at the point where the slope of the indifference curve equals the slope of the budget constraint. In your own words, explain the economic reasoning behind why this point of tangency represents a utility-maximizing choice. Specifically, what do the two slopes represent, and why must they be equal at the optimum?

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