Dictionary_of_Banking_and_Finance

position of trust /pə z ʃ(ə)n əvtr st/ noun a job in which a person is trusted to act correctly and honestly

positive / pɒz t v/ adjective meaning ‘yes’ The board gave a positive reply.

positive carry / pɒz t v k ri/ noun a deal where the cost of the finance is less than the return

positive cash flow / pɒz t v k ʃ fləυ/ noun a situation where more money is coming into a company than is going out

positive yield curve / pɒz t v ji ld k% v/ noun a situation where the yield on a short-term investment is less than that on a long-term investment

POS material / pi əυ es mə t əriəl/ abbreviation point-of-sale material

possess /pə zes/ verb to own something The company possesses property in the centre of the town. He lost all he possessed in the collapse of his company. Compare repossess

possession /pə zeʃ(ə)n/ noun the fact of owning or having something the documents are in his possession he is holding the documents

possessions /pə zeʃ(ə)nz/ plural noun property, things owned They lost all their possessions in the fire.

Compare repossession

post /pəυst/ noun a system of sending letters and parcels from one place to another to send an invoice by post He put the letter in the post. The cheque was lost in the post. to send a reply by return of post to reply to a letter immediately verb 1. to send a letter or parcel by post 2. to record or enter something to post an entry to transfer an entry to an account to post up a ledger to keep a ledger up to date 3. to post an increase to let people know that an increase has taken place

‘Toronto stocks closed at an all-time high, posting their fifth day of advances in heavy trading’ [Financial Times]

postal / pəυst(ə)l/ adjective referring to the post

postal account / pəυst(ə)l ə kaυnt/ noun a bank account where all dealings are done by post, so reducing overhead costs and allowing a higher interest to be paid

postal ballot / pəυst(ə)l b lət/, postal vote / pəυst(ə)l vəυt/ noun

an election where the voters send their ballot papers by post

postal charges / pəυst(ə)ltʃɑ d$ z/ plural noun money to be paid

for sending letters or parcels by post

Postal charges are going up by 10% in September.

postal order / pəυst(ə)l ɔ də/ noun a document bought at a post office, used as a method of paying small amounts of money by post

post-balance sheet event /pəυstb ləns ʃi t vent/ noun something

which happens after the date when the balance sheet is drawn up, and before the time when the balance sheet is officially approved by the directors, which affects a company’s financial position

postdate / pəυst de t/ verb to put a later date on a document He sent us a postdated cheque. His cheque was postdated to June.

post-earnings-announcement drift /pəυst % n ŋz ə naυnsmənt

dr ft/ noun an unexplained downward movement of shares in companies following announcements that quarterly earnings have exceeded expectations

posting / pəυst ŋ/ noun the action of entering transactions in accounts

potential /pə tenʃəl/ adjective possible potential customers people who could be customers potential market a market which could be exploited noun the possibility of becoming something a share with a growth potential or with a potential for growth a share which is likely to increase in value

a product with considerable sales potential a product which is likely to have very large sales to analyse the market potential to examine the market to see how large it possibly is

‘…career prospects are excellent for someone with growth potential’ [Australian Financial Review]

‘…for sale: established general cleaning business; has potential to be increased to over 1 million dollar turnover’ [Australian Financial Review]

pound /paυnd/ noun 1. a measure of weight (= 0.45 kilos) to sell oranges by the pound a pound of oranges Oranges cost 50p a pound. (NOTE:

Usually written lb after a figure: 25lb.

Note also that the pound is now no lon-

ger officially used in the UK.) 2. a unit of currency used in the UK and many other countries including Cyprus, Egypt, Lebanon, Malta, Sudan, Syria and, before the euro, Ireland

poundage / paυnd d$/ noun a rate charged per pound in weight

pound-cost averaging / paυnd kɒst v(ə)r d$ ŋ/ noun the practice of

buying securities at different times, but always spending the same amount of money

pound sterling /paυnd st% l ŋ/ noun the official term for the British currency

power / paυə/ noun 1. strength or ability the power of a consumer group ability of a group to influence the government or manufacturers 2. a force or legal right the full power of the law the full force of the law when applied We will apply the full power of the law to get possession of our property again. There was a power struggle in the boardroom, and the finance director had to resign.

power of appointment / paυər əv ə pɔ ntmənt/ noun the power of a

trustee to dispose of interests in property to another person

power of attorney / paυər əv ə-

t% ni/ noun a legal document which gives someone the right to act on someone’s behalf in legal matters

p.p. abbreviation per procurationem verb to p.p. a letter to sign a letter on behalf of someone Her assistant p.p.’d the letter while the manager was at lunch.

PPP abbreviation personal pension plan

practice / pr kt s/ noun a way of doing things, a custom or habit His practice was to arrive at work at 7.30 and start counting the cash. restrictive practices ways of working which make people less free (such as when trade unions stop workers from doing certain jobs, or stores do not allow customers a free choice of product)

‘…the EC demanded international arbitration over the pricing practices of the provincial boards’ [Globe and Mail (Toronto)]

preannouncement / pri ə-

naυnsmənt/ noun an announcement of

something earlier than the date on which it should normally be announced

precautionary measure /pr -

kɔ ʃ(ə)n(ə)ri me$ə/ noun an action taken to prevent something unwanted taking place

precious metals / preʃəs met(ə)lz/ plural noun very valuable metals, such as gold and platinum

predator / predətə/ noun an individual (or company) who spends most of the time looking for companies to purchase cheaply

predict /pr d kt/ verb to say that something will happen in the future

predictability /pr d ktə b l ti/ noun the ability to be predicted

pre-empt /pri empt/ verb to stop something happening or stop someone doing something by taking action quickly before anyone else can They staged a management buyout to pre-empt a takeover bid.

pre-emption right /pri empʃən ra t/ noun the right of an existing shareholder to be first to buy a new stock issue

pre-emptive /pri empt v/ adjective which is done before anyone else takes action in order to stop something happening pre-emptive strike against a takeover bid rapid action taken to prevent a takeover bid

preference / pref(ə)rəns/ noun 1. a thing which someone prefers the customers’ preference for small corner shops 2. a thing which has an advantage over something else

preference shareholder

/ pref(ə)rəns ʃeəhəυldə/ noun an owner of preference shares

preference shares / pref(ə)rəns ʃeəz/ plural noun shares (often with no voting rights) which receive their dividend before all other shares and are repaid first (at face value) if the company goes into liquidation (NOTE: The US

term is preferred stock.)

COMMENT: Preference shares, because they have less risk than ordinary shares, normally carry no voting rights.

preferential / prefə renʃəl/ adjective showing that something is preferred more than another

preferential creditor / prefə-

renʃ(ə)l kred tə/, preferred creditor

/pr f% d kred tə/ noun a creditor who must be paid first if a company is in liquidation

preferred shares /pr f% d ʃeəz/, preferred stock /pr f% d stɒk/ plural noun same as preference shares

pre-financing /pri fa n ns ŋ/ noun financing in advance

prelim / pri l m/ noun same as preliminary announcement (informal)

preliminary /pr l m n(ə)ri/ adjective early, happening before anything else

‘…preliminary indications of the level of business investment and activity during the March quarter will be available this week’ [Australian Financial Review]

preliminary announcement /pr -

l m n(ə)ri ə naυnsmənt/ noun an announcement of a company’s full-year results, given out to the press before the detailed annual report is released

preliminary prospectus /pr -

l m n(ə)ri prə spektəs/ noun same as pathfinder prospectus

pre-market trading /pri mɑ k ttre d ŋ/ noun trading that takes place before a Stock Exchange officially opens in the morning

premium noun / pri miəm/ 1. a regular payment made to an insurance company for the protection provided by an insurance policy 2. an amount to be paid to a landlord or a tenant for the right to take over a lease flat to let with a premium of £10,000 annual rent: £8,500, premium: £25,000 3. an extra sum of money in addition to a normal charge, wage, price or other amount 4. a gift, discount or other incentive to encourage someone to buy adjective 1. of very high quality 2. very high

‘…greenmail, the practice of buying back stock at a premium from an acquirer who threatens a takeover’ [Duns Business Month]

‘…responsibilities include the production of premium quality business reports’ [Times]

premium bond / pri miəm bɒnd/ noun a government bond, part of the National Savings scheme, which pays no interest, but gives the owner the chance to win a weekly or monthly prize

premium income / pri miəmnk m/ noun income which an insur-

ance company derives from premiums paid by insured persons

premium offer / pri miəm ɒfə/ noun a free gift offered to attract more customers

prepaid /pri pe d/ adjective paid in advance

prepaid reply card / pri pe d r -

pla kɑ d/ noun a stamped addressed card which is sent to someone so that they can reply without paying the postage

prepay /pri pe / verb to pay something in advance (NOTE: prepaying –

prepaid)

prepayment /pri pe mənt/ noun 1. a payment in advance, or the act of paying in advance to ask for prepayment of a fee to ask for the fee to be paid before the work is done 2. US the repayment of the principal of a loan before it is due

prepayment penalty /pri pe məntpen(ə)lti/ noun US a charge levied on

someone who repays a loan (such as a mortgage) before it is due

present adjective / prez(ə)nt/ 1. happening now The shares are too expensive at their present price. What is the present address of the company? 2. being there when something happens

Only six directors were present at the board meeting. verb /pr zent/ to bring or send and show a document to present a bill for acceptance to present a bill for payment by the person who has accepted it to present a bill for payment to send a bill to be paid

presentation / prez(ə)n te ʃ(ə)n/ noun the showing of a document cheque payable on presentation a cheque which will be paid when it is presented free admission on presentation of this card you do not pay to go in if you show this card

presentment /pr zentmənt/ noun US same as presentation

present value / prez(ə)nt v lju / noun 1. the value something has now

In 1984 the pound was worth five times its present value. 2. the value now of a specified sum of money to be received in the future, if invested at current interest rates. Abbreviation PV

COMMENT: The present value of a future sum of money is found by discounting that

future sum, and can be used to decide how much money to invest now at current interest rates in order to receive the sum you want to have in a given number of years’ time.

press /pres/ noun newspapers and magazines We plan to give the product a lot of press publicity. There was no mention of the new product in the press.

press conference / preskɒnf(ə)rəns/ noun a meeting where

newspaper and TV reporters are invited to hear news of something such as a new product or a takeover bid

press coverage / pres k v(ə)r d$/ noun reports about something in newspapers, and magazines and other media

The company had good press coverage for the launch of its new model.

press cutting / pres k t ŋ/ noun a piece cut out of a newspaper or magazine which refers to an item which you find interesting We have kept a file of press cuttings about the new car.

pressing / pres ŋ/ adjective urgent pressing engagements meetings which have to be attended pressing bills bills which have to be paid

press recommendation / presrekəmen de ʃ(ə)n/ noun a share

which has been tipped as a good buy in the financial column of a newspaper

press release / pres r li s/ noun a sheet giving news about something which is sent to newspapers and TV and radio stations so that they can use the information The company sent out a press release about the launch of the new car.

pressure / preʃə/ noun something which forces you to do something he was under considerable financial pressure he was forced to act because he owed money to put pressure on someone to do something to try to force someone to do something The group tried to put pressure on the government to act. The banks put pressure on the company to reduce its borrowings. working under high pressure working with customers asking for supplies urgently or with a manager telling you to work faster the pound has come under pressure on the foreign exchanges many people

have been trying to sell pounds, and this has brought down its exchange rate

The group tried to put pressure on the government to act. The banks put pressure on the company to reduce its borrowings.

pressure group / preʃə ru p/ noun a group of people who try to influence the government, the local town council or some other organisation

pre-tax / pri t ks/, pretax adjective before tax has been deducted or paid

‘…the company’s goals are a growth in sales of up to 40 per cent, a rise in pre-tax earnings of nearly 35 per cent and a rise in after-tax earnings of more than 25 per cent’ [Citizen (Ottawa)]

‘EC regulations which came into effect in July insist that customers can buy cars anywhere in the EC at the local pre-tax price’ [Financial Times]

pretax profit / pri t ks prɒf t/ noun the amount of profit a company makes before taxes are deducted The dividend paid is equivalent to one quarter of the pretax profit. Also called

profit before tax, profit on ordinary activities before tax

pretax profit margin / pri t ksprɒf t mɑ d$ n/ noun the pretax

profit shown as a percentage of turnover in a profit and loss account

previous / pri viəs/ adjective which happens earlier or which existed before

List all previous positions with the salaries earned.

previous balance / pri viəsb ləns/ noun a balance in an account at the end of the accounting period before the current one

prey /pre / noun company which is being attacked by another (the ‘predator’) in a takeover bid

price /pra s/ noun money which has to be paid to buy something asking price price which the seller is hoping to be paid for the item when it is sold competitive price a low price aimed to compete with a rival product to sell goods off at half price to sell goods at half the price at which they were being sold before cars in the £18–19,000 price range cars of different makes, selling for between £18,000 and £19,000 price ex warehouse the price for a product which is to be collected from the manufacturer’s or agent’s warehouse and so does not include de-

livery to increase in price to become more expensive Petrol has increased in price or the price of petrol has increased. to increase prices, to raise prices to make items more expensive we will try to meet your price we will try to offer a price which is acceptable to you to cut prices to reduce prices suddenly to lower prices, to reduce prices to make items cheaper verb to give a price to a product We have two used cars for sale, both priced at £5,000. competitively priced sold at a low price which competes with that of similar goods from other companies the company has priced itself out of the market the company has raised its prices so high that its products do not sell

‘…the average price per kilogram for this season has been 300c’ [Australian Financial Review]

‘European manufacturers rely heavily on imported raw materials which are mostly priced in dollars’ [Duns Business Month]

‘…after years of relying on low wages for their competitive edge, Spanish companies are finding that rising costs and the strength of the peseta are pricing them out of the market’ [Wall Street Journal]

‘…that British goods will price themselves back into world markets is doubtful as long as sterling labour costs continue to rise’ [Sunday Times]

price/book ratio / pra s bυkre ʃiəυ/ noun a ratio of the price of a

stock to its book value

price ceiling / pra s si l ŋ/ noun the highest price which can be reached

price change / pra s tʃe nd$/ noun an amount by which the price of a share moves during a day’s trading

price controls / pra s kən trəυlz/ plural noun legal measures to prevent prices rising too fast

price cutting / pra s k t ŋ/ noun a sudden lowering of prices

price-cutting war / pra s k t ŋ wɔ / noun same as price war

price differential / pra s d fə-

renʃəl/ noun the difference in price between products in a range

price/earnings ratio / pra s % n ŋzre ʃiəυ/ noun a ratio between the cur-

rent market price of a share and the earnings per share (the current dividend it produces), calculated by dividing the market price by the earnings per share

these shares sell at a P/E ratio of 7 Also called P/E ratio. Abbreviation PER

(NOTE: The US term is price/earnings multiple.)

COMMENT: The P/E ratio is an indication of the way investors think a company will perform in the future, as a high market price suggests that investors expect earnings to grow and this gives a high P/E figure; a low P/E figure implies that investors feel that earnings are not likely to rise.

price ex factory / pra s eksf kt(ə)ri/, price ex works / pra s eks

w% ks/ noun a price not including transport from the maker’s factory

price fixing / pra s f ks ŋ/ noun an illegal agreement between companies to charge the same price for competing products

price label / pra s le b(ə)l/ noun a label which shows a price

price list / pra s l st/ noun a sheet giving prices of goods for sale

price movement / pra smu vmənt/ noun a change in the

prices of shares or commodities

price range / pra s re nd$/ noun a series of prices for similar products from different suppliers

price-sensitive /pra s sensət v/ adjective referring to a product for which demand will change significantly if its price is increased or decreased

price tag / pra s t / noun 1. a label attached to an item being sold that shows its price 2. the value of a person or thing The takeover bid put a $2m price tag on the company.

price war / pra s wɔ / noun a competition between companies to get a larger market share by cutting prices. Also called price-cutting war

pricing / pra s ŋ/ noun the act of giving a price to a product

pricing model / pra s ŋ mɒd(ə)l/ noun a computerised system for calculating a price, based on costs, anticipated margins, etc.

pricing policy / pra s ŋ pɒlisi/ noun a company’s policy in giving prices to its products Our pricing policy aims at producing a 35% gross margin.

primary / pra məri/ adjective 1. basic

2. first, most important

‘…farmers are convinced that primary industry no longer has the capacity to meet new capital taxes or charges on farm inputs’ [Australian Financial Review]

primary account number

/ pra məri ə kaυnt n mbə/ noun a series of figures on a credit card, which are the number of the issuing bank and the personal number of the account. Abbreviation PAN

primary commodities / pra məri kə mɒd tiz/ plural noun farm produce grown in large quantities, such as corn, rice or cotton

primary dealer / pra məri di lə/ noun a marketmaker dealing in government stocks

primary industry / pra mərindəstri/ noun an industry dealing with

basic raw materials such as coal, wood or farm produce

primary market / pra məri mɑ k t/ noun a market where new securities or bonds are issued. Also called new is-

sue market

primary products / pra məriprɒd kts/ plural noun products which are basic raw materials, e.g. wood, milk or fish

prime /pra m/ adjective 1. most important 2. basic noun same as prime

rate

prime bills / pra m b lz/ plural noun bills of exchange which do not involve any risk

prime cost / pra m kɒst/ noun the cost involved in producing a product, excluding overheads

prime rate / pra m re t/ noun US the best rate of interest at which an American bank lends to its customers

‘…the base lending rate, or prime rate, is the rate at which banks lend to their top corporate borrowers’ [Wall Street Journal]

COMMENT: Not the same as the British bank base rate, which is only a notional rate, as all bank loans in the UK are at a certain percentage point above the base rate.

prime sites / pra m sa ts/ plural noun the most valuable commercial sites (i.e. in main shopping streets) as opposed to secondary sites

prime time / pra m ta m/ noun the most expensive advertising time for TV

commercials We are putting out a series of prime-time commercials.

priming / pra m ŋ/ noun pump priming

principal / pr ns p(ə)l/ noun 1. a person or company that is represented by an agent The agent has come to London to see his principals. 2. a person acting for himself, such as a marketmaker buying securities on his own account 3. money invested or borrowed on which interest is paid to repay principal and interest We try to repay part of principal each month.

(NOTE: Do not confuse with principle.)

adjective most important The principal shareholders asked for a meeting.

The country’s principal products are paper and wood. The company’s principal asset is its design staff.

‘…the company was set up with funds totalling NorKr 145m with the principal aim of making capital gains on the secondhand market’ [Lloyd’s List]

principle / pr ns p(ə)l/ noun a basic point or general rule in principle in agreement with a general rule agreement in principle agreement with the basic conditions of a proposal

prior / pra ə/ adjective earlier prior agreement an agreement which was reached earlier without prior knowledge without knowing before

prior-charge capital / pra ə

tʃɑ d$ k p t(ə)l/ noun a capital in the form of preference shares, which ranks before other capital in terms of distributions of profits and repayment when a company goes into liquidation

priority /pra ɒr ti/ noun to have priority to have the right to be first to have priority over or to take priority over something to be more important than something Reducing overheads takes priority over increasing turnover.Debenture holders have priority over ordinary shareholders. to give something top priority to make something the most important item

privacy / pr vəsi/ noun a method of ensuring that a person’s personal or credit card payment details cannot be intercepted and read when transferred over the Internet

private / pra vət/ adjective belonging to a single person or to individual people, not to a company or the state a

letter marked ‘private and confidential’ a letter which must not be opened by anyone other than the person it is addressed to

‘…in the private sector the total number of new house starts was 3 per cent higher than in the corresponding period last year, while public sector starts were 23 per cent lower’ [Financial Times]

‘…management had offered to take the company private through a leveraged buyout for $825 million’ [Fortune]

private banking / pra vət b ŋk ŋ/ noun a special banking services offered to very rich people

private client stockbroker

/ pra vət kla ənt stɒkbrəυkə/ noun a stockbroker who deals on behalf of private investors

private enterprise / pra vətentəpra z/ noun businesses which are

owned privately, not nationalised The project is completely funded by private enterprise.

private income / pra vət nk m/ noun income from dividends, interest or rent which is not part of a salary

private investor / pra vət n vestə/ noun an ordinary person with money to invest

private limited company / pra vətl m t d k mp(ə)ni/ noun 1. a

company with a small number of shareholders, whose shares are not traded on the Stock Exchange 2. a subsidiary company whose shares are not listed on the Stock Exchange, while those of its parent company are (NOTE: [all senses]

shortened to Ltd)

private means / pra vət mi nz/ plural noun income from dividends, interest or rent which is not part of someone’s salary

private ownership / pra vətəυnəʃ p/ noun a situation where a

company is owned by private shareholders

private placing / pra vət ple s ŋ/,

private placement / pra vətple smənt/ noun the act of placing a

new issue of shares with a group of selected financial institutions

private property / pra vət prɒpəti/ noun property which belongs to a private person, not to the public

private sector / pra vət sektə/ noun all companies which are owned by private shareholders, not by the state

The expansion is completely funded by the private sector. Salaries in the private sector have increased faster than in the public sector.

privatisation / pra vəta ze ʃ(ə)n/, privatization noun the process of selling a nationalised industry to private owners

privatise / pra vəta z/, privatize verb to sell a nationalised industry to private owners

pro /prəυ/ preposition for

probate / prəυbe t/ noun legal acceptance that a document, especially a will, is valid the executor was granted probate or obtained a grant of probate the executor was told officially that the will was valid

probate court / prəυbe t kɔ t/ noun a court which examines wills to see if they are valid

procedure /prə si d$ə/ noun a way in which something is done The inquiry found that the company had not followed the approved procedures. The management complained that the unions did not follow the proper procedure. this procedure is very irregular this is not the proper way to do something accounting procedures set ways of doing the accounts of a company

‘…this was a serious breach of disciplinary procedure and the dismissal was unfair’ [Personnel Management]

proceed /prə si d/ verb to go on, to continue The negotiations are proceeding slowly. to proceed against someone to start a legal action against someone to proceed with something to go on doing something Shall we proceed with the committee meeting?

proceedings /prə si d ŋz/ plural noun to institute proceedings against someone to start a legal action against someone

proceeds / prəυsi dz/ plural noun money received from selling something

the proceeds of a sale money received from a sale after deducting expenses He sold his shop and invested the proceeds in a computer repair business.

process / prəυses/ noun deci- sion-making processes ways in which decisions are reached verb 1. to process figures to sort out information to make it easily understood The sales figures are being processed by our accounts department. The data is being processed by our computer. 2. to deal with something in the usual routine way

It usually takes at least two weeks to process an insurance claim. Orders are processed in our warehouse.

processing / prəυses ŋ/ noun 1. the act of sorting information the processing of information or of statistics by a computer 2. the processing of a claim for insurance putting a claim for insurance through the usual office routine in the insurance company

produce noun / prɒdju s/ products from farms and gardens, especially fruit and vegetables home produce agricultural produce farm produce verb

/prə dju s/ 1. to bring something out and show it He produced documents to prove his claim. The negotiators produced a new set of figures. The customs officer asked him to produce the relevant documents. 2. to make or manufacture something The factory produces cars or engines. to mass produce to make large quantities of a product 3. to give an interest investments which produce about 10% per annum

product / prɒd kt/ noun 1. something which is made or manufactured 2. a manufactured item for sale

product advertising / prɒd ktdvəta z ŋ/ noun the advertising of a

particular named product, not the company which makes it

product analysis / prɒd kt ə-

n ləs s/ noun an examination of each separate product in a company’s range to find out why it sells, who buys it, etc.

product design / prɒd kt d za n/ noun the design of consumer products

product development / prɒd kt d veləpmənt/ noun the process of im-

proving an existing product line to meet the needs of the market

product engineer / prɒd ktend$ n ə/ noun an engineer in charge

of the equipment for making a product

production /prə d kʃən/ noun 1. the act of showing something on production of when something is shown The case will be released by customs on production of the relevant documents. Goods can be exchanged only on production of the sales slip. 2. the work of making or manufacturing of goods for sale We are hoping to speed up production by installing new machinery. Higher production is rewarded with higher pay.

production cost /prə d kʃən kɒst/ noun the cost of making a product

production department /prə-

d kʃən d pɑ tmənt/ noun the section of a company which deals with the making of the company’s products

production line /prə d kʃən la n/ noun a system of making a product, where each item such as a car moves slowly through the factory with new sections added to it as it goes along

He works on the production line. She is a production-line worker.

production manager /prə d kʃənm n d$ə/ noun the person in charge of the production department

production target /prə d kʃəntɑ t/ noun the amount of units a factory is expected to produce

production unit /prə d kʃənju n t/ noun a separate small group of workers producing a product

productive /prə d kt v/ adjective which produces, especially which produces something useful productive discussions useful discussions which lead to an agreement or decision

productive capital /prə d kt vk p t(ə)l/ noun capital which is invested to give interest

productivity / prɒd k t v ti/ noun the rate of output per employee or per machine in a factory Bonus payments are linked to productivity. The company is aiming to increase productivity.Productivity has fallen or risen since the company was taken over.

‘…though there has been productivity growth, the absolute productivity gap between many British firms and their foreign rivals remains’ [Sunday Times]

productivity agreement / prɒd k-

t v ti ə ri mənt/ noun an agreement to pay a productivity bonus

productivity bonus / prɒd k t v tibəυnəs/ noun an extra payment made

to employees because of increased production per employee

productivity drive / prɒd k t v ti dra v/ noun an extra effort to increase productivity

product management / prɒd ktm n d$mənt/ noun the process of di-

recting the making and selling of a product as an independent item

product mix / prɒd kt m ks/ noun a range of different products which a company has for sale

profession /prə feʃ(ə)n/ noun 1. an occupation for which official qualifications are needed and which is often made a lifelong career The managing director is an accountant by profession.HR management is now more widely recognised as a profession. 2. a group of specialised workers the accounting profession the legal profession

‘…one of the key advantages of an accountancy qualification is its worldwide marketability. Other professions are not so lucky: lawyers, for example, are much more limited in where they can work’ [Accountancy]

professional /prə feʃ(ə)n(ə)l/ adjective 1. referring to one of the professions

The accountant sent in his bill for professional services. We had to ask our lawyer for professional advice on the contract. The professional institute awards diplomas. professional man, professional woman a man or woman who works in one of the professions (such as a lawyer, doctor or accountant) 2. doing work for money a professional tennis player he is a professional troubleshooter he makes his living by helping companies to sort out their problems

professional qualification /prə-

feʃ(ə)n(ə)l kwɒl f ke ʃ(ə)n/ noun a document which shows that someone has successfully finished a course of study which allows him or her to work in one of the professions

profit / prɒf t/ noun money gained from a sale which is more than the money spent on making the item sold or on providing the service offered to take your profit to sell shares at a higher price than was paid for them, and so realise the profit, rather than to keep them as an investment to show a

profit to make a profit and state it in the company accounts We are showing a small profit for the first quarter. to make a profit to have more money as a result of a deal to move into profit to start to make a profit The company is breaking even now, and expects to move into profit within the next two months. to sell at a profit to sell at a price which gives you a profit healthy profit quite a large profit

‘…because capital gains are not taxed and money taken out in profits and dividends is taxed, owners of businesses will be using accountants and tax experts to find loopholes in the law’ [Toronto Star]

‘…the bank transferred $5 million to general reserve compared with $10 million the previous year which made the consolidated profit and loss account look healthier’ [Hongkong Standard]

profitability / prɒf tə b l ti/ noun 1. the ability to make a profit We doubt the profitability of the project. 2. the amount of profit made as a percentage of costs

profitable / prɒf təb(ə)l/ adjective which makes a profit She runs a very profitable employment agency.

profitably / prɒf təbli/ adverb making a profit The aim of every company must be to trade profitably.

profit after tax / prɒf t ɑ ftə t ks/ noun same as net profit

profit and loss account / prɒf t ən lɒs ə kaυnt/ noun the accounts for

a company showing expenditure and income over a period of time, usually one calendar year, balanced to show a final profit or loss. Also called P&L account

(NOTE: The US term is profit and loss statement or income statement.)

profit before tax / prɒf t b fɔt ks/ noun same as pretax profit

profit centre / prɒf t sentə/ noun a person, unit or department within an organisation which is considered separately for the purposes of calculating a profit We count the kitchen equipment division as a single profit centre.

profiteer / prɒf t ə/ noun a person who makes too much profit, especially when goods are rationed or in short supply

profiteering / prɒf t ər ŋ/ noun the practice of making too much profit

profit-making / prɒf t me k ŋ/ adjective which makes a profit The whole project was expected to be profit-making by 2001 but it still hasn’t broken even. It is hoped to make it into a profit-making concern.

profit margin / prɒf t mɑ d$ n/ noun the percentage difference between sales income and the cost of sales

profit on ordinary activities before tax / prɒf t ɒn ɔ d(ə)n(ə)ri k-t v tiz b fɔ t ks/ noun same as

pretax profit

profit-sharing / prɒf t ʃeər ŋ/ noun an arrangement where workers get a share of the profits of the company they work for The company runs a profit-sharing scheme.

profit squeeze / prɒf t skwi z/ noun strict control of the amount of profits which companies can pay out as dividend

profits tax / prɒf ts t ks/ noun a tax to be paid on profits

profit-taker / prɒf t te kə/ noun a person who sells an investment in order to realise a profit

profit-taking / prɒf t te k ŋ/ noun the act of selling investments to realise the profit, rather than keeping them

Share prices fell under continued profit-taking.

‘…some profit-taking was seen yesterday as investors continued to lack fresh incentives to renew buying activity’ [Financial Times]

pro forma /prəυ fɔ mə/ adverb ‘for the sake of form’ verb to issue a pro forma invoice Can you pro forma this order? noun a document issued before all relevant details are known, usually followed by a final version

pro forma invoice /prəυ fɔ mənvɔ s/, pro forma /prəυ fɔ mə/

noun an invoice sent to a buyer before the goods are sent, so that payment can be made or so that goods can be sent to a consignee who is not the buyer They sent us a pro forma invoice. We only supply that account on pro forma.

program / prəυ r m/ noun 1. US same as programme 2. a set of instructions that tell a computer to carry out specific tasks verb to write a program for a computer to program a computer to install a program in a computer

The computer is programmed to print labels.

programmable /prəυ r məb(ə)l/ adjective which can be programmed

programme / prəυ r m/ noun a plan of things which will be done to draw up a programme of investment or an investment programme She is running the development programme or the research programme. The training programme sends all managers for retraining every year. We are initiating a new recruitment programme. (NOTE:

The US spelling is program.)

programmed trading / prəυ r mdtre d ŋ/ noun same as program

trading

programming engineer / prəυ-

r m ŋ end$ n ə/ noun an engineer in charge of programming a computer system

programming language

/ prəυ r m ŋ l ŋ w d$/ noun a system of signs, letters and words used to instruct a computer

program trader / prəυ r mtre də/ noun a person who buys or sells according to a computer program

/ prəυ r mtre d ŋ/ noun the practice of buying and selling shares according to instructions given by a computer program (the computer is programmed to buy or sell when certain prices are reached or when a certain volume of sales on the market is reached)

progress noun / prəυ res/ the movement of work towards completion to report on the progress of the work or of the negotiations to make a progress report to report how work is going in progress which is being done but is not

finished negotiations in progress work in progress verb /prəυ res/ to

move forward, to go ahead The contract is progressing through various departments.

progressive /prə res v/ adjective which moves forward in stages

progressive taxation /prə res v t k se ʃ(ə)n/ noun a taxation system where tax levels increase as the income is higher. Also called graduated taxation. Compare regressive taxation