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A market in which supply and demand are not subject to regulation other than normal competition policy, but in which property and other economic (e.g. consumer) rights are observed so as to allow trade to occur. This is based on the view by such economists as FriedrichHayek that decentralised systems tend to be markedly more efficient than the use of centralised planning. The paradox of free markets is that they have a natural tendency towards consolidation, and therefore require the existence of monopoly regulation.
See other InterestingMemes.