The Economic Way of Thinking 13th Edition by David Prychitko, Peter Boettke, Paul Heyne

Exercise 20

You want to sell at auction an antique dining-room suite. There are three people who want it, and they're willing to pay $8,000, $6,000, and $4,000, respectively. Your reservation price (the price above which the bidding must go before you sell) is $5,000. No one in the room has any information about the value of the suite to anyone else.
(a) At about what price will the suite be sold?
(b) Suppose you run a Dutch auction. The auctioneer announces a price well above what anyone would be willing to pay, and then gradually lowers the price until a bid is received. At about what price will the suite be sold?
(c) Why do stores sometimes add to their advertisements: "Available only while supplies last?"