Trading

Trade is the act of buying, selling, or exchanging goods and services between people, businesses, or countries. People trade to get what they don't have from those who do have those items.

These girls are exchanging goods. This simple trade allows the girls to get something they don't have from someone that has it.

Trading cards, like baseball or football cards, is popular among kids.

Trading one card for another one allows kids to make a complete collection of cards. They are getting something they want from someone who has it.

Trade encourages people to depend on one another for goods and services. Maybe your neighbor has a garden in which she grows tomatoes every year.

The two of you decide to make a trade. In exchange for tomatoes during the summer, you offer to shovel the snow from her driveway during the winter.

In this example, you traded a service for a good. With this trade, you get something you need and don't have from someone who has it (tomatoes). And she gets something she needs but doesn't want to do herself from you (snow cleared). If you know you can trade with someone for something you want, you are likely to rely on that person every time you want that good.