Surplus Absorption and Waste in Neoliberal Monopoly Capitalism
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22744293 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Mary V Wrenn (0000-0003-1727-9194, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 68 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 63 |
| Publication date | 2016-07-05 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Monthly Review (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0027-0520 • E-ISSN: 0027-0520 |
| Publisher | Monthly Review Foundation (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.14452/mr-068-03-2016-07_5 |
| OpenAlex | W2466918988 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 6 |
The central problem in advanced monopoly capitalism is not one of scarce resources clashing against innate, insatiable wants. Rather, it is one of an abundance of production clashing against saturated consumption and investment markets. In order to absorb potential economic output and forestall excess capacity, business interests must continuously search for new markets to exploit or entice existing customers who stand ready to buy the latest product, iteration, or service, and to induce new investment. The key to business survival in a capitalist economy is continual expansion of market share and reach: grow or die.... The efforts applied to this relentless drive undermine the conventional wisdom of market-determined pricing—for were a competitive price system in place, the funds for these expenditures would not exist. As I will show, the resources and funds expended in this quixotic endeavor to grow can be broadly referred to as the "economic surplus."Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.
Business · Capitalism · Commerce · Consumption (sociology) · Economics · Economy · Exploit · Industrial organization · Investment (military) · Market economy · Microeconomics · Monopoly · Natural monopoly · Order (exchange) · Politics · Production (economics) · Service (business) · Finance · Political Economy and Marxism
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2023 - 2025 (3) |
| Highly cited | No |