In markets with inelastic demand and supply, the quantities demanded and supplied exhibit minimal sensitivity to changes in price. When a price ceiling is imposed below the equilibrium price, the impact on both demand and supply remains limited due to the rigidity of these curves.

In essential goods, such as medications or basic utilities—consumers continue to purchase nearly the same amount despite a price decrease. On the supply side, even with reduced profitability, suppliers only slightly adjust the quantity they provide as producers of inelastic goods are often constrained by production capacities.

Since both consumers and producers respond weakly to price fluctuations, the mismatch between the quantity demanded and supplied under a price ceiling is smaller. Since both consumers and producers exhibit limited responsiveness to price changes in markets with inelastic demand and supply, the mismatch between the quantity demanded and supplied under a price ceiling is relatively small. However, the deadweight loss, or the loss of market efficiency, is not determined solely by the change in quantity exchanged. Thus, both the price change and the relative elasticity of the demand and supply curves play crucial roles in determining changes in consumer and producer surplus. The magnitude of the deadweight loss is determined by the relative elasticity of the demand and supply curves, not the elasticity of the individual curve.

The price ceiling leads to a redistribution of surplus. For the side of the market that is more inelastic, the change in surplus tends to be more pronounced because the steeper curve reflects a stronger dependency on price. For example, if supply is more inelastic, producers bear a larger share of the surplus loss because they are less able to adjust their output in response to price reductions. Similarly, a significant price drop under the ceiling can result in a considerable reduction in producer surplus even if the quantity supplied decreases only marginally.