Vocab - Business/Government

Question 1

AAA rating

Answer 1

Rating applied to bonds issued by most credit-worthy companies

(Then AA, A, BBB, BB, B, etc.)

Question 2

Appreciation

Answer 2

An increase in any item’s value over time

Question 3

Asset

Answer 3

Item which has intrinsic value, such as real estate or bonds

Question 4

Balance of trade

Answer 4

Difference between value of a country’s exports and imports

Question 5

Broker

Answer 5

One acting as a middleman between buyers and sellers

Question 6

Commodities

Answer 6

Raw material products (such as soy beans, wheat, or oil), as opposed to manufactured products

Question 7

Copyright

Answer 7

Legal ownership and sole control of their creations, granted to artists and certain others for a specific length of time

Question 8

Deficit

Answer 8

Excess of spending over income

Question 9

Deflation

Answer 9

Fewer dollars buy more goods

Lower prices = increased value of currency

Question 10

Discount rate

Answer 10

Interest charged by Federal Reserve to its members (commercial banks)

Question 11

Due diligence

Answer 11

Efforts made by investors to determine the legitimacy of securities

Question 12

Depreciation

Answer 12

Reduction in value over time, due to age or use

Question 13

Dunn and Bradstreet

Answer 13

Publishers of selected stock market prices

Question 14

Escrow

Answer 14

Funds held in trust by a third party while a transaction is in progress

Question 15

Fair market value

Answer 15

Price which most willing sellers and willing buyers would agree upon during sale negotiations

Question 16

Federal Reserve

Answer 16

Central banking system of the United States, controlling value of the dollar by setting interest rates, and loaning funds to commercial banks

Question 17

Fortune 500

Answer 17

Publication which reports on certain important corporations
- by extension, any large, profitable enterprise (“it was a Fortune 500 operation”)

Question 18

FTC

Answer 18

Federal Trade Commission

Question 19

Futures

Answer 19

Estimation of commodity values at a future point in time

EXAMPLE: what investors expect wheat will sell for next August

Question 20

General domain

Answer 20

Items whose copyright protection has lapsed

Question 21

Inflation

Answer 21

More dollars buy fewer goods

Higher prices = decreased value of currency

Question 22

LEI (formerly GDP - gross domestic product)

Answer 22

Leading economic indicators
One measure of a nation’s economic performance over a period of time

Question 23

Liquidity

Answer 23

Assets available for immediate use (such as cash) instead of assets held for investment or other purposes (such as real estate or fine art)

Question 24

NASD

Answer 24

National Association of Securities Dealers

Question 25

NASDAQ

Answer 25

Stock price quotations published by NASD

Question 26

NYSE

Answer 26

New York Stock Exchange

Question 27

Patent

Answer 27

Legal ownership and sole control over productions, granted to investors and certain others for a specific length of time

Question 28

Prime rate

Answer 28

Interest rate charged by banks to their preferred business customers

Question 29

SEC

Answer 29

Securities and Exchange Commission

Question 30

Securities

Answer 30

Documents which show ownership of stocks or bonds

Question 31

T-bill

Answer 31

A U.S. Treasury note, widely considered a risk-free investment

Question 32

Trademark

Answer 32

Similar to copyright, but limited to names, symbols, or other product identification marks or company logos