dumping

Dumping

Used in the context of general equities. Offering large amounts of stock with little or no concern for price or market effect.

Dumping

1. The act of exporting a good to a country where the exported good is much less expensive in the importing country than domestically produced goods of the same type. This can result in a handsome profit for the exporter. Importing countries attempt to counteract dumping by setting up tariff barriers. Some countries peg their currencies artificially low so as to enable dumping. See also: Outsourcing.

2. The act of selling at a loss. This may apply to selling a stock, especially in a panic sale, to minimize losses. Alternatively, it may apply to a company selling low on purpose to gain market share or force competitors into a costly price war.

dumping

1. The selling of large amounts of a stock or stocks in general at whatever market prices are in effect. For example, investors might dump stocks upon hearing of an outbreak of fighting in some part of the world.

2. The selling of a product in one market at an unusually low price while selling the same product at a significantly higher price in another market. For example, a firm may sell a product in its home market at a price covering all costs and then sell the product in a foreign market at a significantly lower price covering only variable costs.

dumping

the sale of a product by a firm in an EXPORT MARKET at a price below that charged in its own domestic market. Firms may choose to lower their overseas sales prices in order, for example, to dispose of surplus output, or as part of a MARKET PENETRATION PRICING strategy aimed at building the firm's market share in export markets over the longer term. Whatever the firm's motivation, such a pricing practice constitutes ‘unfair’ INTERNATIONAL TRADE under WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION conventions, and member countries are entitled to protect their domestic producers against dumping by applying anti-dumping duties, or countervailing duties on offending products. See LOCAL CONTENT RULE. PROTECTIONISM.

dumping

the EXPORT of a good at a price below that charged for the good in the domestic market. Dumping may occur as a short-term response to a domestic recession (i.e. surplus output is sold abroad at a cut-price simply to off-load it) or as a longer-term strategic means of penetrating export markets (once a foothold has been gained, prices would then be increased to generate profits). Either way, dumping is viewed as ‘unfair’ trade and is outlawed by the trade rules of the WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION. See BEGGAR-MY NEIGHBOUR POLICY, COUNTERVAILING DUTY.