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export tax

Also known as: export duty

Quick Summary

An export tax, also known as an export duty, is a tax or duty imposed by a country on goods that are exported. While not as common today, export duties were historically used to safeguard domestic supplies rather than solely to raise revenue. Some resource-rich countries still rely on them for revenue, often taxing mineral, petroleum, and agricultural products.12

Export duties can also serve as a protectionist measure for domestic industries, encouraging local processing or manufacturing by making raw material exports more expensive. The burden of an export tax can fall on domestic producers if the country supplies a small portion of the world's exports, or it can be shared between domestic producers and foreign consumers if the country has a significant market share.2

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2 Britannica Sources
  1. export tax
  2. tariff

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