Economics: Today and Tomorrow © 2008

Chapter 10: Financing and Producing Goods

Chapter Overviews

Section 1: Investing in the Free Enterprise System
Decisions about financing and production are the first steps in making goods and services available to consumers and industry. Explanations of how savings are used as investment funds to finance business startup and growth are provided. Also, companies use cost-benefit analysis before deciding whether to pursue expansion and financing in the first place.

Section 2: Types of Financing for Business Operations
The three kinds of debt financing according to the length of repayment are: short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term financing. Determining the best type of financing is crucial when attempting to eliminate debt.

Section 3: The Production Process
After financing has been obtained, businesses can begin production. There are four steps in production operations: planning, purchasing, quality control, and inventory control. This section also takes a historical look at how technology has changed methods of production since the Industrial Revolution in the late 1700s.