M: The standard abbreviation for imports produced by the domestic economy and purchased by the foreign sector, especially when used in the study of macroeconomics. This abbreviation is most often seen in the aggregate expenditure equation, AE = C + I + G + (X - M), where C, I, G, and (X - M) represent expenditures by the four macroeconomic sectors, household, business, government, and foreign. The United States, for example, buys a lot of the stuff produced within the boundaries of other countries, including bananas, coffee, cars, chocolate, computers, and, well, a lot of other products. Imports, together with exports, are the essence of foreign trade--goods and services that are traded among the citizens of different nations. Imports and exports are frequently combined into a single term, net exports (exports minus imports).

     See also | imports | exports | net exports | foreign sector | aggregate expenditures | consumption expenditures | investment expenditures | government purchases | domestic | foreign trade | balance of trade | free trade | trade barriers | quota | comparative advantage | C | I | G | M |

M, AmosWEB GLOSS*arama, http://www.AmosWEB.com, AmosWEB LLC, 2000-2025. [Accessed: December 12, 2025].

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A curve that graphically represents the relation between marginal factor cost incurred by a perfectly competitive firm for hiring an input and the quantity of input employed. A profit-maximizing perfectly competitive firm hires the quantity of input found at the intersection of the marginal factor cost curve and marginal revenue product curve. The marginal factor cost curve for a perfectly competitive firm with no market control is horizontal.

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