Economy, in general, is unreal. Mostly because people are greedy and opportunistic. Market can be manipulated especially if you have the means and connections to do so. Case to point, hoarding. As usual, I'm going to use my country as an example (sorry). We're supposedly one of the major producers of rice and yet often, there would be period of rice shortages. Businessmen collude and hoard the rice and drive the prices up. Even if almost everyone knows by now that it's an artificial shortage, people would still do anything to buy rice because it's our staple food. The more financially challenged would give up on other things to be able to divert what little cash they have into buying food. And no, it's not only the rice. A LOT of stuff here gets hoarded. The province I'm living in now has a lot of farms and plantations and yet the prices for vegetables and such are exorbitant. But they get away with it because food is a necessity. And they don't hesitate to take advantage because living in luxury beats being poor. Another point (and not even artificial) was during a strong quake back 1990/91 that had people selling their properties for low value not only to have cash for survival but also from fear that another quake would destroy Baguio City (it's high up in the mountains). So off the rich business people went buying this and that. It's easy to say, so don't play the game. But not everyone has the option of simply upping and leaving. Like here, they don't spare anyone and even target food supplies. Plant your own. Except a lot of people have been robbed of their lands by rich people with private armies or those with connection way up there.
one man's crisis is another man's opportunity
Then again, perhaps what I see as greed is only them simply surviving (in style) the way they want to. Or people being good at spotting (exploiting) an opportunity.
Do you live in communism or socialism?
Democratic republic overrun by capitalism. Supposedly, everyone (eligible) elect their choice but since the candidates are mostly from (/supported by) oligarchy, whoever gets elected have other priorities that mostly don't involve serving and protecting the interest of the masses. So instead of "for the people, by the people" it becomes a joke here to say "poor the people, buy the people". But it's looking like it might change a bit in the next 5 years. Then again, the oligarchs are pretty much pulling out all the stops to protect their interests. Tsk tsk.