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General Education Office
BUSINESS ENGLISH
LA.231/LA.331/LA.3501
Unit 8: Markets
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Objectives
By the end of this class you should be able to…
1. Use “markets” vocabulary.
2. Describe types of markets
3. Use comparatives and superlatives (with much, a lot and a little)
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Thailand’s Top Exports (2011)
http://www.thaiexportproduct.com/top10thaiexportproducts.php
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World Population
A) Look at the pie chart and answer these questions
1) What is the population of North America?
The population of North America is three hundred and thirty two million.
2) What percentage of the world’s population lives in Europe?
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Expressing Numbers
Vocabulary
A) Listen and repeat these numbers.
6,300
six thousand, three hundred
75,807
seventy-five thousand, eight hundred and seven
823,120 eight hundred and twenty-three thousand, one hundred and twenty
1,255,500 one million two hundred and fifty-five thousand five hundred
10.5%
ten point five percent
B) Listen and underline the correct number.
1) Last year, the company had a market share if 10.3 / 103 percent.
2) Last year, sales of the main brand increased by 30 /13 percent.
3) Last year, the company sold more than 850,000 / 815,000 units of Sparkle
4) The company wants to increase it’s market share to 11.5 / 11.9 percent.
5) Next year, the company wants to sell 1,100 / 1,100,000 units of Sparkle.
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Pie chart information
B) In groups of 4, review the pie charts given and
• complete the tables
• answer the 2 questions
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Types of Market
Vocabulary
C) Match the beginnings of the sentences(1-5) with their endings (a – e)
1
2
3
4
5
Coca-Cola is a mass market product; it
Selling special interest holidays is a
niche market; it
Rolex watches sell in a luxury market;
they are
An export market
A home market
a) is a small but often profitable market
b) is outside the producer’s country
c) is in the producers country
d) high quality and expensive goods
e) sells to large number of people
D) Think of products which match the types of market in Exercise C
Nike shoes sell in a mass market.
Ferrari sports cars are a luxury market product.
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Types of Market
Vocabulary
E) Match the beginnings of the sentences (1 – 5) with their endings (a – e)
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
A new market
A growing market
A profitable market
A big market
An attractive market
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
is large
allows companies to make money.
is good to enter
is getting larger
is at an early stage
F) Match the adjectives in italics in Exercise E with their opposite meanings ( a – e)
a) Unattractive
b) Unprofitable
c) Mature
d)
e)
declining
small
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Types of Market
In groups of four, use the sheets provided, write four products and
producers for the following markets:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Growing
Niche
Declining
Mass
Profitable
Luxury
Export
Home
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What do you know about Russia?
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The car market in Russia
Reading
A) In small groups, discuss these questions/
1) What do you know about the Russian economy?
2) In your country, what do the richest people like to spend their money on?
B) Before you read the article, match these words (1 – 6) to their meanings (a-f)
1 to stand out
a) standard; not designed for one particular person
2 flashy
b) covered with something on its surface
3 encrusted
c) designed for one particular person
4 emerging
d) to be easy to notice because of being different or special
5 custom-made
e) expensive looking; made to impress other people
6 off-the-peg
f) beginning to have a lot of power in trade and finance
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Vocabulary examples
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The car market in Russia
Reading
D) Read the article and choose the correct answers to complete these
sentences.
1
The number of very rich people in Russia is…..
a) going down
b) increasing
c) stable
2
Last year, DaimlerChrysler’s sales in Russia were …….. the year before.
a) the same as
b) lower than
c) higher than
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According to Alexandra Melnikova, the situation in Russia is ….. that in China.
a) similar to
b) different from
c) better than
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Many Russian business people want a custom made car because …..
a)
they all dream of a gold Rolls-Royce.
b)
they want to compete on the same level as the Chinese.
c)
standard luxury cars are not impressive enough
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Do you know me?
I’m Roman Abramovich
I’m worth: 380,423,000,000 Baht
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Language Focus
Language Focus – Comparatives and Superlatives
We compare two people or things with comparative forms of adjectives.
• Sales of luxury cars are higher this year than last year.
• The Mercedes SL500 is more expensive than a Volkswagen.
We compare three or more people or things with superlative forms.
• The country is now the biggest market for some car manufacturers.
• What is the most expensive make of car?
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Language Focus
Language Focus – Comparatives and Superlatives
a) Correct the mistakes in these sentences.
1) It is more harder to break into export markets than home markets.
2) China is a more big market than Japan.
3) Our market share is more low than it was last year.
4) The rate of inflation is more bad this month than it was last month.
5) This month’s sales are more high than last month’s.
6) The Asian market is more good than the European market for rice.
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Language Focus
Language Focus – Comparatives and Superlatives
b) Complete these conversations using the superlative form.
1) This is a good product.
Yes, it’s the best product on the market.
2) This is an expensive hotel.
the most expensive place in the city.
Yes, it’s ___________
3) She is a very popular manager.
the most popular
Yes, she’s ____________
head of department in the company.
4) This is a cheap product.
the cheapest
Yes, it’s ___________
product in the catalog.
5) This is a very competitive market.
most competitive market in Asia.
Yes, it’s the
___________
6) This is a bad year.
the worst
Yes, it’s ___________
year in the last ten years.
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Language Focus
C) Complete this article with the appropriate form of the words in brackets.
Profile
I opened a hairdressing salon last year. The
most important 1 (important) thing is to think
about your target customers. My hairdressing
salon is located in my parents’ hotel. My
customers are ________ 2 (old) and ________ 3
(rich) than my main competitor’s. They like
excellent service and a cup of coffee. My main
competitor’s customers are ______ 4 (young)
than mine. She offers a ________ 5 (cheap)
service than I do. However my salon is
________ 6 (comfortable) than hers. My
________ 7 (exciting) customer is a famous
model.
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Language Focus – much / a lot / a little / a bit
We use much or a lot with comparative adjectives to talk about
large differences. Much is more formal than a lot.
• Fruit snacks are much healthier than sugary snacks.
• New Zealand is a good market but Australia is a lot more attractive.
We use a little or a bit with comparative adjectives to talk about small
Differences. A little is more formal than a bit.
The PDX 100 is a little more expensive than the PDX200.
This month’s sales are a bit higher than last month’s.
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Language Focus – much / a lot / a little / a bit
A) Complete the sentences about the cars.
1) The Rolls-Royce is ______ bigger than the Ferrari.
2) The Ferrari is ________ bigger than the Smart Car.
3) I think the ________ is faster than the _________ .
4) In my opinion, the _______ is ________ comfortable then the _____.
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Language Focus – much / a lot / a little / a bit
Sales € (000’s)
B) Talk about sales in France and in Spain. Use this chart.
Quarter
In the first quarter, sales
in France were a little higher
than in Spain. In France,
sales in the second quarter
were much higher than in the
first quarter
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Language Focus – much / a lot / a little / a bit
C) Using the Pie Charts from earlier make three sentences using
much, a lot and a little.
D) Compare these two pool tables using much, a lot, and a little.
The Classic Pool table is a bit wider than the Trainer Pool Table.
Trainer Pool Table
Classic Pool Table
Width
93cm
95cm
Length
176cm
180cm
Height
78cm
80cm
Weight
25kg
50kg
Price
€144
€280
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Skills – Participating in Discussions
A) Three marketing executives, Jacek, Paul and Anna, talk about a new
morning snack called Krakel. Listen to their conversation and underline
the correct answers.
1) Who does Jacek want to target with the new bar?
a) children
b) rich women
c) young workers
2) Jacek says more people these days….
a) do not have breakfast b) have breakfast on the way to work
c) eat breakfast at home
3) Krakel contains ….
a) no sugar
b) a bit of sugar
c) a lot of sugar
4) Krakel contains…
a) no fruit
b) a bit of fruit
c) a lot of fruit
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Skills – Participating in Discussions
B) Listen to the conversation again. Complete these extracts
1) Sorry, Paul, I don’t agree with you.
2) I ________ we need to target young working people.
3) You’re __________. There is a big market for morning snacks.
4) How do you __________ about this, Anna?
5) I really _________ the idea.
6) OK. _______ call a meeting and talk to the rest of the department.
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Skills – Participating in Discussions
C) Look at the extracts in Exercise B. Decide whether the speaker is:
a) Agreeing
b) Disagreeing
c) Asking for an opinion
d) Giving an opinion
e) Making a suggestion
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Skills – Participating in Discussions
Useful language
Agreeing
Giving an opinion
You’re right.
I think ……….
I really like the idea.
In my opinion………..
Disagreeing
Making a suggestion
(sorry), I don’ agree with you.
Let’s……
I’m afraid I don’t agree.
How about ….?
Ask for an opinion
What do you think?
How do you feel about this?
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Summary
During this class you have learned how to:
1. Use “markets” vocabulary.
2. Describe types of markets
3. Use comparatives and superlatives (with much, a lot and a little)