APHG Unit 7 Vocab

Absolute advantage

A country can produce particular goods more efficiently than others.

Agglomeration economies

A localized economy in which a large number of companies and industries cluster together and benefit from the cost reductions and gains in efficiency that result from this proximity.

Basic industries

Industries that sell their products or services primarily to consumers outside the settlements.

Break-of-bulk point

A location where transfer is possible from one mode of transportation to another.

Capitalist class

Those who own the means for producing and distributing goods.

Working class

Those who sell their labor in exchange for wages.

Carbon neutrality

A state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions

Commodity dependence

An economy that relies on the export of primary commodities for a large share of its export earnings and economic growth.

Comparative Advantage

The ability of a country to produce particular goods or services at a lower cost than other countries.

Competitive advantage

A modification of comparative advantage that takes into account the mix of infrastructure, skilled labor, government, domestic demand, levels of domestic competition, agglomeration economies, and other items

Complementarity

A demand for or deficit in a product in a place and a supply or surplus of the same product in another place

Containerization

Using standard-size containers to ship goods from port to port.

Debt crisis

A situation in which past loans’ interest grows so large that countries cannot continue to pay off the debt

Deindustrialization

A process in which the industrial activity in a country or region is removed or reduced because of a major economic or social change

Dependency theory

LDCs rely highly on foreign factories and technologies from MDCs to provide employment and infrastructure, causing their economies to not fully develop.

Ecotourism

A type of tourism that focuses on experiencing natural areas while minimizing the negative environmental impact.

Export processing zone (EPZ)

Areas established by many countries in the periphery and semi-periphery set up to enhance commercial and industrial exports by encouraging economic growth through foreign investment.

Financial market

A market in which financial assets (securities) such as stocks and bonds can be purchased or sold

Fordism

Mass production in which each employee is given a specific task to continuously perform, and has to work at a pace dictated by the speed of the assembly line.

Free trade agreement

Designated group of countries that have agreed to eliminate tariffs, quotas, and preferences on most (if not all) goods and services between them.

Free trade zone (FTZ)

Allows for goods from foreign countries to be imported without a tariff, that is, without being taxed for the sake of being foreign goods

Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM)

Compares the ability of women and men to participate in economic and political decision-making.

Gender Inequality Index (GII)

A score between 0 and 1 that measures the inequalities women face; low value is low inequality, and high value is high inequality.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and GDP per capita

The value of the total output of goods and services produced in a country in a given time period (normally a year)

Gross National Income (GNI)

Total income, including investment income (regardless of where earned) and foreign investment and development aid.

Gross National Product (GNP)

Total value of goods and services by the citizens and corporations of a country as well as foreign investments in a given year.

Growth Pole

Area of a country where specific industries bring employees thus causing economic growth within the industry as well as the housing market and local economy

Human Development Index (HDI)

An indicator of the level of development for each country, constructed by the United Nations, combining income, literacy, education, and life expectancy.

Import substitution industrialization

Government strategy that emphasizes the replacement of some agricultural or industrial imports to encourage local production for local consumption rather than producing for export markets.

Income distribution

How income is divided among different groups or individuals

Industrial Revolution

A series of improvements in industrial technology that transformed the process of manufacturing goods.

Informal sector

Mostly illegal products sold and/or not regulated by the government.

Formal sector

Regulated and/or taxed by the government.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Monitors global financial developments, provides short term loans to countries, and provides tech advice and training.

Just-in-time manufacturing

Seeks to reduce inventories for the production process by purchasing inputs for arrival just in time to use and producing output just in time to sell.

Labor productivity

The quantity of goods and services that can be produced by one worker or by one hour of work

Labor union

An organized association of workers, often in a trade or profession, formed to protect and further their rights and interests.

Least cost theory (Weber)

Describes and predicts the location of manufacturing industries based on three factors: transportation costs, labor cost, and the benefit of agglomeration.

Mass consumption

A large number of people purchasing large quantities of goods.

Mercosur (or Southern Common Market)

South American organization whose purpose is to expand trade, improve transportation, and reduce tariffs among member countries

Microloan

Provision of small loans and other financial services to individuals and small businesses in developing countries.

Multiplier Effects

Describes the expansion of an area's economic base as a result of the basic and non-basic industries located there.

Neoliberalism

Derives from the idea that government intervention into markets is inefficient and undesirable, and should be resisted wherever possible.

New International division of labor

The transfer of some types of jobs, especially those requiring low-paid, less-skilled workers, from more developed to less developed countries.

Nonbasic industries

Industries that sell their products primarily to consumers in the community.

Offshoring

The practice of relocating business operations and functions to another country, usually an LDC.

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

A supranational organization that controls the price of oil and petroleum

Outsourcing

A decision by a corporation to turn over much of the responsibility for production to independent suppliers.

Post-Fordism

A more flexible set of production practices in which the component of goods are made in different places around the globe and then brought together is needed to meet market demand- brings places closer together in time and space

Primary sector

The portion of the economy concerned with the direct extraction of materials from the Earth’s surface, generally through agriculture, although sometimes by mining, fishing, and forestry.

Quaternary sector

Knowledge-based sector, focusing on research and information creation and transfer.

Quinary sector

Highest decision-making level, includes top officials in business and government.

Secondary sector

The portion of the economy concerned with manufacturing useful products through processing, transforming, and assembling raw materials.

Semiperiphery

Countries that offer their citizens relatively diverse economic opportunities, but also have extreme gaps between rich and poor.

Special economic zone (SEZ)

An area in a country that is subject to different economic regulations than other regions within the same country.

Sustainable development

The level of development that can be maintained in a country without depleting resources to the extent that future generations will be unable to achieve a comparable level of development.

Tariff

A tax that a government charges people on import and export goods

Tertiary sector

The portion of the economy concerned with transportation, communications, and utilities, sometimes extended to the provision of all goods and services to people in exchange for payment.

Trade embargo

An order issued by a government barring the entry of specific types of imports from a specific country.

Transnational corporation

A company that conducts research, operates factories, and sells products in many countries, not just where its headquarters or shareholders are located.

World Systems Theory (Wallerstein)

Explains the spatial relationships between countries and uneven economic development. States that there is one interconnected economy with core, semi-periphery, and periphery countries.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

Group made up of people from all over the world who together control international trade