Glossary Terms:

A written order to a financial institution directing the financial institution to pay a stated amount of money, as instructed, from the customer's account.

An amount that must be paid or spent to buy or obtain something. The effort, loss or sacrifice necessary to achieve or obtain something.

The allocation or dividing up of the goods and services a society produces.

Tangible objects that satisfy economic wants.

Spending by all levels of government on goods and services; includes categories like military, schools and roads.

Payments earned by households for selling or renting their productive resources. May include salaries, wages, interest and dividends.

Money paid regularly, at a particular rate, for the use of borrowed money.

A piece of work usually done on order at an agreed-upon rate. Also a paid position of regular employment.

The quantity and quality of human effort available to produce goods and services.

The people in a nation who are aged 16 or over and are employed or actively looking for work.

The labor supply and labor demand curves. The intersection of the labor supply and labor demand curves determines the equilibrium wage and the quantity of hours people work at this equilibrium wage.

A process of manufacturing, growing, designing, or otherwise using productive resources to create goods or services used to to satisfy a want.

A decline in the rate of national economic activity, usually measured by a decline in real GDP for at least two consecutive quarters (i.e., six months).

Activities performed by people, firms or government agencies to satisfy economic wants.

The exchange of goods and services for money or other goods and services.

The number of people without jobs who are actively seeking work.

The number of unemployed people, expressed as a percentage of the labor force.

Effort applied to achieve a purpose or result, often for pay; skills and knowledge put to use to get something done; employment at a job or in a position; occupation, profession, business, trade, craft, etc.

People employed to do work, producing goods and services.