The United States�Canada Auto Pact (1965), formally entitled the Agreement Concerning Automotive Products between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States, was a bilateral agreement liberalizing trade in automobiles and original equipment (OEM) parts. The Auto Pact was an important precursor to the Canadian- U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CFTA, 1989), which, in turn, was the �blueprint� for the NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT (NAFTA).

Automatic or built-in stabilizers are government programs and policies that cushion the impact of a change in spending in the economy. Technically automatic stabilizers reduce the multiplier effect of an autonomous change in spending.

Along with bookkeeping, FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING, and MANAGERIAL ACCOUNTING, auditing is one of the branches of accountancy. Auditing - the process of examining the books and records of a business, agency, or organization to determine the accuracy of the accounts contained therein - verifies that the accounting system accurately represents and reports the transactions that have occurred over the past year.

Attitude, interests, opinions (AIO) statements are a type of market research survey designed to learn about consumers� attitudes, interests, and opinions. AIO statements are one method of developing psychographic profiles of market segments. The survey technique involves creating a series of statements with which respondents are asked to agree or disagree.

The attention, interest, desire, action (AIDA) concept, first proposed by E. K. Strong in the 1930s, explains the process that individuals go through when making a purchase decision. The AIDA concept is a tool managers consider when designing their marketing strategies.

Assets are revenue-generating resources owned by every firm. It is impossible for a firm to earn (generate) revenues without owning and using its assets. Assets are divided into current assets and long-term assets. Current assets, which are the more liquid assets that a firm owns, have useful lives of one year or less. Examples of current assets are cash, ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE, merchandise inventory, supplies, various prepaid expenses such as prepaid rent and prepaid insurance, and short-term investments.

An assessment center is a tool or a service used in HUMAN RESOURCES management and designed to assist in career choice and development. In large organizations, assessment centers are part of a human resources department and are used to select new personnel, evaluate performance, and assist in internal promotion decisions.

Assembly plants are factories located all over the world that bring together materials and machines to produce PRODUCTs. They are typically located where there is access to large numbers of low-cost workers.

An assembly line is a manufacturing system where specialized workers focus on repetitive tasks, adding efficiency to the PRODUCTION of a PRODUCT. An assembly line is likely to be composed of numerous subassembly lines, taking raw materials and making parts and components, which are then used in producing the final product.

Arbitration is a method of business DISPUTE SETTLEMENT involving neutral �arbitrators.� Arbitration is often required under business and consumer contracts and is seen as an alternative to litigation in courts.