value-added tax (VAT): tax levied on the value added
to goods at every stage of production.
variable costs: costs that increase as the number of units
produced increases.
variable expense: expenses that increase or decrease
with the volume of business.
variable-rate loan: a loan with an interest rate that
changes, tracking market conditions.
velocity: the number of times that the money supply is
spent in a year; the speed at which money circulates.
venture capital: money available for high-risk investtments.
vertical integration = vertical merger
vertical merger: combination of companies involved in
different steps of the same production process; also called
vertical integration.
W
wages: the price paid for the use of labor. (To the
economist, the term refers to the nation's wealth paid to labor,
as distinct from other forms of income - rent, interest, and
profit.)
