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Economic Definition of subsidy. Defined.

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Term subsidy Definition: A payment from government to individuals or businesses without any expectations of production. The best way of thinking about a subsidy is as a negative tax. Government extends subsidies for many different reasons. They go to students, unemployed workers, the poor, farmers, wealthy friends of political leaders, businesses trying to fend off foreign competitors, and the list could go on. Subsidies are frequently used to redirect resources from one good to another. Sometimes this is justified on efficiency grounds and other times it's just the result of political power.

 

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