Important Business Terms To Know

• Barter System – a system of exchange which involves the swapping of goods between individuals.
• Capital Goods – goods used to produce other goods, such as tools, equipment and machinery.
• Consumers – individuals who use or ‘consume' goods and services to satisfy their needs and wants.
• Customers – individuals who buy goods and services supplied by businesses.
• De-industrialization – the decline in manufacturing.
• Division of labour – specialization in specific tasks or skills by individuals.
• Factors of production – resources used by businesses to produce goods and services.
• Markets – anywhere that buyers and sellers communicate to exchange goods and services.
• Money – any substance which is generally accepted as a means of exchange.
• Needs – human requirements which must be satisfied for survival.
• Primary production – activities which involve the extraction of raw materials from the earth and the growing of food.
• Secondary production – activities such as manufacturing which transform raw materials into finished goods.
• Specialisation – in business, the production of a limited range of goods.
• System – parts that work together to achieve an objective; a system can be a communication system, a business, an economic or political system.
• Tertiary production – activities which involve the provision of services.
• Wants – human desires which are unlimited.