merchant exporter

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a trader or trading business that buys goods from producers and exports them, rather than manufacturing the goods itself

   The merchant exporter bought grain from inland dealers and shipped it to foreign markets.

A compound of merchant and exporter. Merchant comes through Anglo-French marchant from Latin mercari, 'to trade,' while exporter is export plus the agent suffix -er. Adam Smith used merchant-exporter for the branch of the corn trade that bought domestic produce for sale abroad; the term remains current for traders who export goods made by others.

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