underground economy: exchanges of goods and services
not reported to the government for tax purposes.
underwrite: to assume risk, as in the case of those who
underwrite the sale of securities by purchasing an entire
issue from the corporation and marketing it on their own.
underwriting: buying an initial stock or bond offering
and selling it to the public. Investment bankers are underwrit-
318
ers; they make money by charging more for the stock or
bonds than they paid for the securities.
unemployment rate: indicator of economic activity that
compares the number of people in the labor force to the num-
ber looking for work; percentage of the labor force unable to
find jobs.
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC): a comprehensive set
of business laws adopted by almost all the states. The idea
was to make the rules of commercial transactions - such as
the sales of goods - universal.
union shop: allows nonunion workers to be hired on
condition that they join the union.
unit cost: the cost of producing an item, determined by
dividing total costs by the number produced.
unit price: the price of one item.
