The Invisible Hand of market economies is only the logic of arbitrage under available capital constraints moving utility from plenty to scarcity on an opportunity cost determination of purchase and selling price.
If there weren't a deficiency of utility occurring in an environment of available end user opportunity capital, that disposable capital available to be spent on an opportunity cost basis, there would be no arbitrage profit possible and therefore no market possible.
There are two aspects to price discovery. Value is utility x scarcity and end user maximum price is (utility x scarcity) ÷ (available end user opportunity capital) so arbitrage purchase price has to be lower than the maximum end user purchase price or the market fails. That arbitrage purchase price, both estimated and realized, defines all possible market transactions.
Arbitrage is done on a basis of risk and reward. They are taking a chance that their purchase price will be enough lower than their selling price to cover expenses and return a profit. That risk, and that reward when it pays off, constitute the so-called Invisible Hand of the market. The only harmony of interests is that both buyer and seller desire a complete transaction at maximum benefit. It's a negotiation of the possible. Every market transaction is a zero sum game but the cumulative effect, by guiding the allocation of resources to produce for maximum return, is wealth creation. That's the market magic that led Adam Smith into talk of the irrational.
Do Well and Be Well
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