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Originally Posted by Mansun
The Shire had potential for economic growth, I certainly did not rule that out. But so long as Hobbits lived in their own little country, unconcerned by the events beyond their borders, economic growth would be very difficult. They would need to develop their trades further afield to prosper.
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I think they were already prosperous. Food was plentiful. Cottage industries abounded. And, it seems, their pipe weed was exported both to Bree and Isengard.
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As For Loth Lorien and Mordor, they are simply too incomprehendable to measure their true value and prestige economically.
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They always gave me the impression of being outside of the traditional economic system. In fact, the early MERP game (from ICE) went into some fair detail describing elven society as a "hierocracy", with gifts and honors as "currency", rather than money. Maybe later I can find those books in the attic.