The
growth of the economic system is tied to growth of business and industry. This type of growth is referred to as
secular trend. Secular
trend is based primarily in growth of the population. In the absence of a decline in the standard of living, a growing
population offers a market for an increasing amount of all types of
commodities.
Secular
trend is found in prices as well as in physical volume time series. Prices of commodities tend to decline as
industries introduce cheaper methods of production. In contrast, if the production of goods depends upon an
increasingly depleted supply of raw materials then price trend may show an
upward secular trend.