Supply (economics)

Supply is the quantity of a product or service that a company or a country has available to sell. Companies and countries can increase or decrease the supply of something by making more or less of it. For example, if a company is making more cars, it increases the supply of cars. If it stops making them, the supply decreases. Countries can do the same thing – if a country like the United States makes more cars, the supply of cars in the United States increases.

In economics, it is important to know how much of something is available at any given time. This is so businesses and countries can know how much of something they should make and how much they should charge for it. If something is rare or hard to make, it can be more expensive and valuable. If something is in high supply, it might be cheaper or less valuable.