Working paper at SSRN
Abstract Standard economics is regarded as the theory of the market system. Profit is the pivotal phenomenon of this system. Contrary to expectations, though, profit is neither well defined nor fully understood. The frailty of the theoretical core is passed on to the subfields. This paper provides a consistent definition of profit and applies it to the analysis of the effects of the government sector's budget on employment and the profitability of the business sector. Since the formal point of departure is different from the standard approach it is quite natural that we arrive at new conclusions on some fundamental issues.