Economic activities refer to all those human activities which are undertaken to earn a living and thereby satisfy human wants. The main objective of these activities is to earn income and create wealth.
The money earned through work is used to satisfy wants. For example, a teacher teaches in a school or college, a doctor attends to patients in his clinic and a shopkeeper sells goods to his customers.
Economic activities are concerned with the production and distribution of goods and services. These activities create utilities and result in the production of wealth. Economic activities are also called occupations.
The main characteristics of economic activities are as follows:
ADVERTISEMENTS:
(i) The motive behind economic activities is to produce goods and services for satisfying human wants.
(ii) Economic activities involve proper allocation of scarce resources so that maximum satisfaction can be obtained from them.
(iii) Economic activities require optimum utilisation of land, labour, capital and other factors of production. Welfare of society can be maximised when best use of resources is made.
(iv) Economic activities are undertaken for production of wealth as represented by goods and services. The main motive behind economic activities is to make an economic gain.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
(v) Economic activities involve creation of utilities.