The dispersal of the power and duty to take decisions away from the centre and towards other bodies. Within the public sector this means leaving decisions to local or regional rather than central government. In the private sector it means devolving decisions to divisions or subsidiaries of firms instead of taking them at headquarters. Decentralization may also be pursued by transferring decisions from the state to private bodies such as housing associations, or by breaking up monopolistic companies.

• production subsidy
• productive efficiency
• productivity
• product liability
• product life cycle
• professional body
• profit
• profit-and-loss account
• profit maximization
• profit motive
• profit-related pay
• profit-sharing
• profit-taking
• program, entitlement
• program, mandatory spending
• programming, linear
• progression
• progressive tax
• progress, technical
• prohibitive tariff
• proliferation of products
• promotion, export
• proof by contradiction
• proof by induction
• propensity to consume