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David Ricardo (18 April 1772 – 11 September 1823) was a British political economist, politician, and member of Parliament. He is recognized as one of the most influential classical economists , alongside figures such as Thomas Malthus , Adam Smith and James Mill .
Jul 11, 2024 · David Ricardo, English economist who gave systematized, classical form to the rising science of economics in the 19th century. His laissez-faire doctrines were typified in his Iron Law of Wages, which stated that all attempts to improve the real income of workers were futile.
- Early Life and Education
- Notable Accomplishments
- Published Works
- The Bottom Line
Born in England in 1772, one of 17 children, David Ricardo began working with his father as a stockbroker at the age of 14. He was disowned by his father at 21, however, for marrying outside his religion. His wealth came from his success with a business he started that dealt with government securities. He retired at the age of 41 after earning an e...
Comparative Advantage Theory
Among the notable ideas that Ricardo introducedwas the theory of comparative advantage, which argued that countries can benefit from international trade by specializing in the production of goods for which they have a relatively lower opportunity cost in production even if they do not have an absolute advantagein the production of any particular good. For example, a mutual trade benefit would be realized between China and the United Kingdom from China specializing in the production of porcela...
Labor Theory of Value
Another of Ricardo's best-known contributions to economics was the labor theory of value. The labor theory of value states that the value of a good could be measured by the labor that it took to produce it. The theory states that the cost should not be based on the compensation paid for the labor, but on the total cost of production. One example of this theory is that if a table takes two hours to make, and a chair takes one hour to make, one table is worth two chairs, regardless of how much...
Theory of Rents
Ricardo was the first economist to discuss the idea of rents, or benefits that accrue to the owners of assets solely due to their ownership rather than their contribution to any actual productive activity. In its original application, agricultural economics, the theory of rents shows that the benefits of a rise in grain prices will tend to accrue to the owners of agricultural lands in the form of rents paid by tenant farmers. Ricardo's idea was later also applied to political economics, in th...
In his Essay on the Influence of a Low Price of Corn on the Profits of Stock(1815), Ricardo conceptualized the law of diminishing returns with respect to labor and capital. Ricardo wrote his first article on economics, published in The Morning Chronicle, at the age of 37. The article advocated for the Bank of England to reduce its note-issuing acti...
David Ricardo was an 18th-century English economist renowned for his contributions to economic theory. He developed the comparative advantage theory, labor theory of value, and the theory of rents, which have founded other schools of thought and form the basis of current economic policies and decisions. Although best known for his work in economics...
In arguing for free trade, Ricardo formulated the idea of comparative costs, today called comparative advantage —a very subtle idea that is the main basis for most economists’ belief in free trade today. The idea is this: a country that trades for products it can get at lower cost from another country is better off than if it had made the ...
Jan 18, 2024 · David Ricardo: The Architect of Comparative Advantage. David Ricardo’s story is more than a tale of financial success and intellectual prowess; it’s a narrative that illustrates the power of curiosity and the impact of economic thought on policy and global trade.
Mar 19, 2024 · David Ricardo, a prominent figure in classical economics, is best known for his influential theories, including comparative advantage, labor theory of value, theory of rents, and the law of diminishing returns.
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Jun 11, 2018 · RICARDO, DAVID (1904–1982), scholar of the liturgical music of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews. Born in Amsterdam, Ricardo acquired his knowledge and love of this music from his grandfather Elyakim Alvarez Vega, who was ḥazzan of the Spanish and Portuguese synagogue in Amsterdam from 1885 to 1923.
