Concept
How do economic systems determine how resources and goods are allocated?
IntroductionToBusiness OP 8D04gAa / 1.3. How Business and Economics Work*
"A business’s success depends in part on the economic systems of the countries where it is located and where its sells its products. A nation’s economic system is the combination of policies, laws, and choices made by its government to establish the systems that determine what goods and services are produced and how they are allocated. Economics is the study of how a society uses scarce resources to produce and distribute goods and services. The resources of a person, a firm, or a nation are limited. Hence, economics is the study of choices—what people, firms, or nations choose from among the available resources. Every economy is concerned with what types and amounts of goods and services should be produced, how they should be produced, and for whom. These decisions are made by the marketplace, the government, or both. In the United States, the government and the free-market system together guide the economy. Global Economic Systems Businesses and other organizations operate according to the economic systems of their home countries. Today the world’s major economic systems fall into two broad categories: free market, or capitalism; and planned economies, which include communism and socialism. However, in reality many countries use a mixed market system that incorporates elements from more than one economic system. The major differentiator among economic systems is whether the government or individuals decide: • How to allocate limited resources—the factors of production—to individuals and organizations to best satisfy unlimited societal needs • What goods and services to produce and in what quantities • How and by whom these goods and services are produced • How to distribute goods and services to consumers Managers must understand and adapt to the economic system or systems in which they operate. Companies that do business internationally may discover that they must make changes in production and selling methods to accommodate the economic system of other countries."
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