By implementing the theory of derived demands of factors in production economics， the properties of short-term price elasticities of electricity demand under time-of-use（TOU） rates are deduced， and the correlation between the own and cross price elasticities is revealed. It is derived that in every period the own and cross price elasticities sum up to zero， which means that adjusting of the TOU rates by a same amplitude does not， in short-term， change the daily electricity demand distribution of the consumers. As an application of the above conclusion， a seasonal TOU pricing method is presented， which can realize the goal of load control while adjust the benefit shares among the utility and electricity users. In the end， the short-term price elasticity properties are verified by a real case study， and a numerical example is offered for illustrating the presented seasonal TOU pricing method.