BARTER ECONOMY: An economy that trades goods and services using barter exchanges rather than money. Barter economies originally predated the invention of money, emerging out the early stage of self-sufficiency before giving way to the use of commodity money. However, barter economies occasionally surface in modern times, especially when the public loses confidence in the monetary unit during a government crises or a period of hyperinflation. See also | barter | money | exchange | double coincidence of wants | market | hyperinflation | monetary unit | government |
