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# Bounties on Exportation

## Definition

Government payments or subsidies provided to domestic producers when they export goods, intended to make their products more competitive in foreign markets. These bounties are funded by domestic taxpayers and ultimately raise prices for home consumers while attempting to secure foreign market share.

## Source Chapter

Book IV, Chapter 8

## Context

Smith analyses how bounties represent one of the mercantile system's primary tools for promoting exports. He argues that these subsidies, while benefiting specific producer groups, impose costs on the broader population and distort natural market mechanisms without necessarily increasing national wealth.

## Economic Domain

Regulation

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