quota
noun
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Definition of quota
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Synonyms for quota
Synonyms
allotment, allowance, cut, end, part, piece, portion, proportion, share, slice, take
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Examples of quota in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Canada uses a supply management system, which limits the amount of product the dairy industry can produce and puts quotas on imports, which the US says hurts American dairy farmers. — Jen Kirby, Vox, "The US and Canada haven’t budged on NAFTA," 7 Sep. 2018 The Italian minister for economic development told Bloomberg that quotas could be part of a deal that also covers cars, pharmaceuticals and textiles. — The Economist, "Europe must agree a common position to avoid Donald Trump’s tariffs," 10 May 2018 The Korea Iron & Steel Association welcomed the deal while saying the quota was smaller than the industry wanted. — Bloomberg News, BostonGlobe.com, "US settles South Korea trade dispute before summit with North," 26 Mar. 2018 The quota system in employment, admission, state legislatures and the parliament won the loyalty of lower-caste Hindus and of Muslims, too. — WSJ, "To What Extent, if Any, Should Race Count?," 18 Dec. 2018 Heavily regulated traffic using permits issued under a quota system will begin flowing on Wednesday. — Dake Kang, The Seattle Times, "China opens mega-bridge linking Hong Kong to mainland," 23 Oct. 2018 One is this month’s doubling of foreign-investment quotas under the 17-year-old Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor program, to $300 billion. — Shen Hong, WSJ, "China Counters Selloff by Cutting Markets Some Slack," 24 Jan. 2019 Something like 40 percent of the countries in the world have introduced some kind of quota for women in terms of participation in national parliaments and local government. — Sean Illing, Vox, "Want less poverty in the world? Empower women.," 5 Nov. 2018 The group has exposed the existence of minimum quotas for beds at detention centers - beds that ICE must pay for even when they’re not filled. — Mark Collette, Joshua Fechter And Bill Lambrecht, San Antonio Express-News, "Companies earn billions to shelter immigrant children," 29 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'quota.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for quota
quota
nounFinancial Definition of quota
What It Is
Quota can refer to a measure that sets the limits, either minimum or maximum, on a particular activity.
How It Works
Quotas are usually set by government or by an organization of producers of a particular product.
For trade quotas, governments set the quota limiting the import of a particular product, restricting the access to the domestic market by an offshore producer, and giving the domestic producers the opportunity to improve their position in the market. Such protectionist policies in industries including steel, autos, and many consumer electronics products, have protected domestic industry from international competition.
In production quotas, a government or a group of producers, limit the supply of a particular product in order to maintain a certain price level. For example, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries sets a production quota for crude oil in order to "maintain" the price of crude oil in world markets.
Why It Matters
Quotas counteract natural market forces and trends and usually upset normal business cycles. For example, protecting domestic industry from international competition has kept it alive, but has not increased its competitiveness. In an increasingly global economic marketplace, quotas tend to weaken domestic industry. As for production quotas, while maintaining prices in the world markets may sound like a good idea for producers, it can have the effect of forcing consumers to find alternative products (e.g., the search for alternative energy in the case of oil) or worse (e.g., take up arms to fight for rights to natural resources).
Source: Investing Answers
quota
noun
English Language Learners Definition of quota
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Legal Definition of quota
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