Bank and businesses
Most business need
to borrow money to
finance ( pay for)
investments (things
they need to buy in
order to help the
company, e.g. Machines)
Bank and businesses
The money they borrow from
the Bank is called a loan, and
on this loan they have to pay
interest,e.g. If you borrow
$1.000.- and the interest rate is
10%, then you pay back or
repay $1.000.- plus $100 in
interes.
Most companies are happy if they can
break even in their first year of business.
One of the main aims /
objectives ( the things that
you hope to do /achieve) of a
company is to make profit
(earn / receive more money
than it spends) (# make a
loss). If a company does not
make a profit or a loss, it
brakes even.
Profit and costs
Companies receive money from
selling their products, this money
is called turnover. The money
that they espend is called the
expenditure. They spend money
on these things: raw materials ;
labour ; overheads.
Vocabulary
•Raw material = material in their natural state
used to make something else.
e.g. Coal and oil are important
raw materials used to make
plastics.
•Labour
= employees
•Overheads
= necessary costs for a company.
e.g. Rent for buildings,
electricity, telephone
DESCRIBING TRENDS
Rise and fall
Business often need to talk about the movement of sales,
prices, interest rates, profit and loss, etc. Here are some of
the words used to describe these trends ( = movements,
changes):
rise/go up/increase
fall /go down
rise slowly/slightly
fall slowly
rise sharply
go down sharply
VERBS OR NOUNS
VERB (ACTION)
NOUNS (THING)
• to rise
• a rise
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
• an increase
to increase
to improve
to recover
to grow
to turn up
to pick up
to strengthen
to boost
to edge up
to go up
to rocket
U
P
W
A
R
D
• an improvement
• a recovery
• a growth
• an upturn
• an upward trend
• an advance
• a boost
VOCABULARY
Upward trends
to improve (-ed, -ed, -ing) =
to make something better
than it was before.
to increase (-ed, -ed, -ing) =
to become larger in amount,
number or degree.
to recover
=
to increase or improve after a
difficult period or fall.
=
to increase in number,
amount or value.
(-ed, -ed, -ing)
to rise (rose, risen-rising)
VOCABULARY
Upward trends
to grow (grew – grown) =
to increase in amount,
size or degree.
to pick up (picked up)
to improve.
to turn up (turned up)
=
=
to strengthen (-ed) =
suddenly becoming
better.
to increase in value;to
improve the financial
situation
VOCABULARY
Upward trends
to boost (boosted)
=
To make something
increase by an external
push or help
to edge up (edged up) =
to increase by a small
amount.
to go up (went up, gone up) =
to rise, to increase
to rocket (rocketed)
to rise or increase quickly
and suddenly.
=
VERBS OR NOUNS
VERB (ACTION)
NOUNS (THING)
• To fall
• To drop
• To decrease
• To go down
• To reduce
• To cut
• To plummet
• To plunge
• To slash
• To halve
• To weaken
D
O
W
N
W
A
R
D
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
a fall
a drop
a decrease
a decline
a reduction
a cut
a slump
a downward
trend
VOCABULARY
Downward trends
to fall (fell- fallen)
to go down to a lower
level, price or amount.
=
to drop (dropped)
=
to fall to a lower level or
amount.
to decrease (decreased)
=
to go down to a lower
level, to make sth do this.
to go down (went down ,
gone down)
=
to move to a lower level.
VOCABULARY
Downward trends
to reduce (reduced) =
to make sth less or smaller
in price, amount or size.
to cut (cut –cut)
=
to reduce prices , amounts,
money.
to plummet (-ed)
=
to suddenly and quickly go
down in value or amount.
Plunge.
to plunge (plunged)
=
to suddenly go down by a
large amount. Plummet.
VOCABULARY
Downward trends
to slash (slashed)
=
to greatly reduce an
amount, price or money
to halve (halved)
=
to go down to half or a
previous amount, level,
price.
to weaken (weakened) =
to begin to fall in value,
e.i. Investments, prices,
currencies, etc
Business and the Economy
In order to grow/ expand (get bigger) and
thrive/prosper (do well/be successful), many
companies want or need the following:
• Low inflation
• Low interest rates
So prices do
not go up
So the company can borrow
money without paying a lot of
interest.
Things remain steady and stable and there
are no sudden changes in the economy and
political situation.
• Economic and political stability
A healthy or strong economy is in
good condition.
An ecocomy in recession is in a period
of reduced and slow business activity.
Tax cuts = tax reduction / lower taxes
so companies can keep
more of their profits.
This often depends on government
expenditure, e.g. the government will not be
able to reduce taxes if public expenditure continues
to rise.
Exercises
1.
What single word or phrace is being defined
in each of these sentences?
1. Money you borrow
from a bank for your
business.
2. What you must pay
the bank if you
borrow money.
3. The continous
increase in the price
of things.
answers
Exercises
1.
What single word or phrace is being defined
in each of these sentences?
4. The things you hope
to do/achieve within
a period of time.
5. When a company
does not make a
profit or a loss.
6. When an economy is
in a period of
reduced and slow
business activity.
answers
Exercises
2.
Replace the underlined word(s) in each sentence with
another word that has the same meaning.
1. There has been a
slow rise in sales.
2. This comes after a
dramatic fall last
year.
3. Fortunately the
company is doing
well now.
answers
Exercises
2.
Replace the underlined word(s) in each sentence with
another word that has the same meaning.
4. And it’s growing
very quickly.
5. This is one of their
main objectives.
6. Profits have risen
considerably.
answers
Exercises: Describing graphs.
3.
Look at the graph and complete the sentences with
one word for each gap.
1. In 1996 sales
2. In the following year they
3. In 1998 there was a
in sales.
4. In 1999 business improved and there was a
5. And in 2000 sales
6. In the fiv-year period sales
.
by 40,000.
answers
Describing trends
Exercises
4. Fill the gaps to form compounds words or common
phrases.
1.
_________ expenditure
2. _________ stability
tax
_________
3.
answers
Exercises
4. Fill the gaps to form compounds words or common
phrases.
4.
_________ rate
5.
raw
6.
Profit and _________
_________
answers
Exercises
5. Can you answer these questions about your own
country?
1. What is the current inflation rate?
2. If you borrowed $10.000 from your
bank, what would the interest rate
be approximately?
Exercises
5. Can you answer these questions about your own
country?
What is the state of the economy
3.
at the moment? Is it strong?
Is it in recession?
4. Do you think businesses are
Optimistic about the future?
Exercises
5. Can you answer these questions about your own
country?
Has the government reduced
5. company taxes or personal taxes in
the last twelve months?
6. Has public expenditure risen or
fallen in the last twelve months?
Answer sheet
1.
What single word or phrace is being defined
in each of these sentences?
1. Money you borrow
from a bank for your
business.
2. What you must pay
the bank if you
borrow money.
3. The continous
increase in the price
of things.
a loan
interest
inflation
Back
Answer sheet
1.
What single word or phrace is being defined
in each of these sentences?
4. The things you hope
to do/achieve within
a period of time.
5. When a company
does not make a
profit or a loss.
6. When an economy is
in a period of
reduced and slow
business activity.
Aims
Objectives
It breaks even
recession
Back
Answer sheet
2.
Replace the underlined word(s) in each sentence with
another word that has the same meaning.
1. There has been a
slow rise in sales.
increase
2. This comes after a
dramatic fall last
year.
sharp
3. Fortunately the
company is doing
well now.
thriving
prospering
Back
Answer sheet
2.
Replace the underlined word(s) in each sentence with
another word that has the same meaning.
4. And it’s growing
very quickly.
expanding
5. This is one of their
main objectives.
aims/goals
6. Profits have risen
considerably.
gone up
increased
Back
Answer sheet
3.
Look at the graph and complete the sentences on the
left with one word for each gap.
1. In 1996 sales
increased slightly
2. In the following year they
3. In 1998 there was a
went down slowly
sharp fall
in sales.
4. In 1999 business improved and there was a
gradual
rise.
rose sharply/dramatically.
In the fiv-year period sales went up / rose
5. And in 2000 sales
6.
by 40,000.
Back
Answer sheet
4. Fill the gaps to form compounds words or common
phrases.
1.
public expenditure
2. economic and political stability
tax
cuts/
reductions
3.
Back
Answer sheet
4. Fill the gaps to form compounds words or common
phrases.
4.
interest rate
5.
raw
material
Profit
and
loss
6.
Back