The Black Market or the Underground Market

568 Words2 Pages

Black markets are the underground markets that operate outside “the legal system in which either illegal goods are sold or legal goods are sold at illegal prices or terms.” Black markets are characterized with high prices, violence, and defective products. The high prices in black markets especially in comparison to legal markets, comes from the risk that the supplier is undertaking. Suppliers are taking the risk of “arrest, possibility of a fine or prison sentence, and so on.” The violence that many times characterizes black markets stems from the fact that there are “no legal channels for the peaceful settlement of disputes” and the party that does not follow through with the agreement must be made to follow the agreement, many times through the use of threats or force. Black markets undermine and undercut legal markets making for a weaker overall system in markets where black markets are more common.
Black markets hurt governments, legal sellers, and buyers. One of the most common causes and also one of the most hurt is the taxation system of the country that the black market operated in. Black markets are non-taxable and thus the government loses valuable taxes from the illegal gains. Black markets “account for a significant portion of GDP (gross domestic product) in many countries” and it is estimated that the size of the United States’ black markets to be almost 8-10% of the gross domestic product of the United States. Not only do black markets damage the economic stability of the countries they operate, they also hurt the legally acquired economic gains of competing marketplace sellers. Legal sellers cannot compete with the prices or products of black markets and thus they lose gains that could be made without the o...

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...vely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

Works Cited

Gwartney, J. D. (2013). Economics: private and public choice (14th ed.). Australia: South-Western Cengage Learning, 78.
Ibid., 78.
Ibid., 78.
Ibid., 78.
Davidson, C., Martin, L., & Wilson, J. (2007). Efficient Black Markets?. Journal of Public Economics, 91(7-8), 1575-1590.
Ibid.
Horwitz, S. (2004, June 8). Cigarette Smuggling Linked to Terrorism . The Washington Post. Retrieved November 5, 2013, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A23384-2004Jun7.html
Whatley, S. (2009, July 24). North Korea Executes Christian For Distributing Bible: Rights Group. The Huffington Post. Retrieved November 5, 2013, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/24/north-korea-christian-exe_n_244340.html
Philippians 4:8-9 (New International Version)

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