Lectures on ESP listening for advanced bachelor education program

ACADEMY OF FINANCE Nguyen Thanh Huyen, M.A Dang Phuong Mai, M.A Lectures on ESP Listening For Advanced Bachelor Education Program FINANCE PUBLISHING HOUSE PREFACE Listening is one of the most difficult language skills among the four communication competences; however, it has received much less time in English learning than the other three (reading, writing, and speaking) Also, listening is often claimed to be a passive skill in the classroom, as learners seem to sit quietly and listen to dialogues As language teachers, we are constantly striving to create the conditions under which our students can learn and succeed At Academy of Finance, the fact is that, teachers and students not get easy access to the English listening sources because not many books have been written regarding listening skill for academic purposes As a result, this book is designed to solve the classroom problem dealing with the improvement of listening skill of the students, especially those who are studying English for business and financial environment Listen to Academic English came out with an intention to help students develop excellent ears while they are joyfully responding to guided listening practices LEARN TO LISTEN AND LISTEN TO LEARN The tasks designed in this book, hopefully, will bring the teachers and learners effective tools to practice listening to Academic English Furthermore, both learners and teachers will be provided with authentic listening materials to explore business and financial world They will at the same time gather critical facts and then stop worrying about what they are going to say and focus on what’s being said, they will put more thought into what the speakers want to communicate The book consists of 10 units covering the topics of economics, public finance, banking, accounting and so on Learners can uncover underlying issues in the field of economics and finance when exposing to the listening audios Authentic listening tasks will promote active listening of the learners because they are guided to effective listening skill through each unit of lessons and by the way learn how to utilize academic terminologies ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We would like to thank the Administration of Academy of Finance, who provides us great opportunities and much encouragement for designing the book We also thank the Department of Scientific Project management, AOF for giving us suggestions for formatting and procedures on completing the final draft We must thank our Leader of Division of Foreign Languages, Doctor Tran Thi Thu Nhung, who strongly supported us in the production of the book We also feel grateful to our colleagues who provided us with essential listening materials to be incorporated into the design of the book Special thank is given to the group of authors of English Department, the Faculty of Foreign Language at Academy of Finance The group of authors consists of: Le Thi Huong Giang Vu Quynh Nga Nguyen Xuan Huong Giang Vu Thi Phuong Nguyen Thi Hong Hanh Pham Thi Tam Nguyen Thu Giang 10 Pham Thi Thu Nguyen Thi Thuy Huong 11 Bui Thi Bich Thuy Tran Thi Thu Nhung Finally, we would like to say thanks to AOF students, AEP program who usually send us their good appreciation, and from whom we are much motivated to try our best to design a good piece of writing TABLE OF CONTENT PREFACE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT UNIT 1: MICROECONOMICS AND MACROECONOMICS UNIT 2: PUBLIC FINANCE 14 UNIT 3: FISCAL POLICY 22 UNIT 4: MONETARY POLICY 29 UNIT 5: FINANCIAL MARKETS 36 UNIT 6: MONEY AND BANKING 46 UNIT 7: TAXATION 55 UNIT 8: ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 62 UNIT 9: FINANCIAL ANALYSIS 68 UNIT 10: INTERNATIONAL TRADE 76 Tapescript 83 UNIT 1: MICROECONOMICS AND MACROECONOMICS Listening – What is Macroeconomics? Preview Match the word on the left column with the correct definition on the right column Write the answer on the space provided a a statement of what is judged, likely GDP unemployment to happen in the future, especially in connection with a particular situation b the utilization of economic goods to satisfy needs or in manufacturing rate c the total value of everything produced consumption in the country It doesn't matter if it's produced by citizens or foreigners d a change, or the process of changing, - especially continuously between one forecast level or thing and another e the number of unemployed people as a percentage of the labor force, where policy the latter consists of the unemployed plus those in paid or self-employment f a set of ideas or a plan for action fluctuation followed by a business, a government, a political party, or a group of people Task Listen and fill in the blanks Macroeconomics (from the Greek prefix-Makro meaning “large’’ and “economics”) is a branch of economics dealing with the performance, structure, behavior and (1) ……………… of an economy as a whole, rather than individual markets This includes national, (2) ……………… and global economies With microeconomics, macroeconomics is one of the two most general fields in economics Macro economists study aggregated indicators such as GDP, unemployment rates and price indices and the (3) ………………… among the different sectors of the economy to better understand how the whole economy functions Macro economists develop models that explain the relationship between such factors as national income, (4) ………………, consumption, unemployment, inflation, savings, investment, international trade and international finance In contrast, microeconomics is primarily focused on the (5) …………… of individual agents such as firms and consumers and how their behavior determines prices and quantities and specific markets While macroeconomics is a broad field of study, there are two areas of research that are implemented of the discipline: the attempt to understand the causes and consequences of short-run (6) ……………… in national income, the business cycle and the attempt to understand the determinants of long run economic (7)………………(increases in national income) Macroeconomic models and their forecasts are used by governments to assist in the development and evaluation of economic (8) …………… Listening - Japan’s Recession Preview Synonym match: Match the following synonyms from column on the left to the column on the right ponder a financial resources consecutive b phases indicated c credit attribute d showed purse strings e close to ominous f think about on the brink of g up-and-coming emerging h see-sawing teetering i successive 10 stages j Unpromising Task Listen and choose the best answer Who is thinking about implications for the global Who is worried that Japan's recession could be ominous? economy? a) everyone a) world leaders b) financial analysts b) Japan's prime minister c) people with stocks c) consumers d) Japanese consumers d) tax authorities How many quarters in a row has Japan's economy shrunk? What did David Cameron say the world was on the brink of? a) a) a recovery and boom b) b) a new age 10 implemented and analyze the effects of these changes on the company and the bottom line Cost accounting helps provide upto-date data when measuring how intelligently company resources are being used By identifying production costs and then defining the cost of production for successive business cycles, it is possible to know any underlying trends that indicate a rise in production costs without any appreciable changes or increase in production of goods and services This approach makes it possible to identify the reason for the change and takes steps to contain the situation and limit cost incurred before profits are impacted to a greater degree 8,3 - The financial statements The financial statements required by GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) are the Balance Sheet, the Income Statement, the Statement of Cash flow, and the Statement of Owner’s Equity The Balance Sheet, sometimes referred to as the Statement of Financial Position, provides the users of financial statements a snapshot of the company’s financial position as of a specific date in time The balance sheet shows the general categories of accounts: Assets, Liabilities, and Equity These three categories 113 constitute what is known as “The Accounting Equation” which is Assets equals Liabilities plus Owners Equity The Income Statement, or Statement of Operations, or Statement of Profit and Loss, provides the users of financial statements a picture of the income and expenses of the company over a period of time Typically, the Income statement shows the information for a calendar year Sometimes, the income statement can be for a non- calendar year or a fiscal year basis, which means any twelve month period The Income Statement is made up of two general types of accounts: Revenues and Expenses Net Income is computed by taking the company’s Revenues and Subtracting the company’s Expenses for the period When Expenses are greater than Revenues, then there is said to be a Net Loss For GAAP purposes, the Income Statement is prepared using the accrual method of accounting under most circumstances The Statement of Cash Flows provides the users of financial statement a reconciliation of the company’s beginning and ending cash Any cash that comes in the business is referred to as Cash Inflows Any cash that goes out of the business is referred to as Cash Outflows The cash inflows and outflows are shown separately for each of the three business activities, namely, Operating Activities, Investing Activities and Financing Activities 114 The Statement of Owners Equity provides the users of financial statements a reconciliation of the company’s beginning and ending equity accounts This statement can have different formats, depending on the type of legal entity When a Statement of Owner’s Equity is presented for a corporation, the statement might show increases for Net Income and stock issuance and for decreases, the statement might show Net loss, Dividends and stock buybacks UNIT 9.1 Financial ratios A ratio is a mathematical relation between one quantity and another A financial ratio is a comparison between one bit of financial information and another Consider the ratio of current assets to current liabilities, which we refer to as the current ratio This ratio is a comparison between assets that can be readily turned into cash known as current assets and the obligations that are due in the near future known as current liabilities A current ratio of over or means that we have twice as much in current assets as we need to satisfy obligations due in the near future Ratios can be classified according way they are constructed and their general characteristics By construction, ratios can be 115 classified as a coverage ratio, a return ratio, a turnover ratio, or a component percentage: 1, A coverage ratio is measure of a company’s ability to satisfy (meet) particular obligations A return ratio is a measure of the net benefit, relative to the resources expended A turnover ratio is a measure of the gross benefit, relative to the resources expended A component percentage is the ratio of a component of an item to the item When we assess a company’s operating performance, we want to know if it is applying its assets in an efficient and profitable manner When we assess a company’s financial condition, we want to know if it is able to meet its financial obligations There are six aspects of operating performance and financial condition we can evaluate from financial ratios: A liquidity ratio provides information on a company’s ability to meet its short term, immediate obligations A profitability ratio provides information on the amount of income from each dollar of sales An activity relates information on a company’s ability to manage its resources (that is, its assets) efficiently 116 A financial leverage ratio provides information on the degree of a company’s fixed financing obligations and its ability to satisfy these financing obligations A shareholder ratio describes the company’s financial condition in terms of amount per share of stock A return on investment ratio provides information on the amount of profit, relative to the assets employed to produce that profit 9.2 Financial statements purposes Financial statement analysis: the process of reviewing and evaluating a company’s financial statements such as the balance sheet or profit and loss statement, thereby understanding the financial health of a company and enabling more effective decision making is called financial statement analysis Financial statements record financial data, however, this information must be evaluated through financial statement analysis to become more useful to investors, shareholders, managers and other interested parties/bodies It can also be defined as the process of identifying financial strengths and weaknesses of the firm by properly establishing relationship between the items of the balance sheet and the profit and loss account Financial statement analysis is crucial for parties inside the firm and parties outside the firm as well Parties 117 having significance of the financial statement analysis are top management, labor unions, trade creditors, lenders, investors, researchers, etc The goal of financial statement analysis is to measure the current profitability and operational efficiency of the firm and to determine the power of the firm to repay its debts in time 9.3 FS users Financial statement analysis: its aims are to estimate current and past financial positions and the results of the operation of an enterprise, with primary objective of determining the best possible estimates and predictions about the future conditions It involves analysis of financial information to establish relationships and thorough line on the points of strengths and weaknesses of a firm, which can be useful in decision making involve in comparison: with other firms, also known as crosssection analysis; with firms and performance over a time period, also known as time series analysis and within an industry average, also known as benchmark comparison The nature of analysis will differ depending on the purpose of the analyst Financial analysis is useful and significant to different users in the following ways: For finance manager: FA focuses on the facts and relationships related to managerial performance, corporate efficiency, 118 financial strengths and weaknesses and credit-worthiness of the company A finance manager must be well-equipped with the different tools of analysis to make rational decision for the firm as well as to determine the continuity of the operating policies, investment value of the business, credit ratings and testing the efficiency of operations The techniques are equally important in the area of financial control, enabling the finance manager to make constant reviews of the actual financial operations of the firm to analyze the causes of major deviations, which may help in correct deviation wherever indicated For top management, the importance of FA is not limited to the finance manager alone It has a broad scope which includes top management in general and other functional managers It is the overall responsibility to see that the resources of the firm are used most efficiently and that the firm’s financial condition is sound FA helps the management in measuring the success of the company’s operations, operating the individual’s performance and evaluating the system of internal control For trade payables doing analysis of financial statements, operate is not only the ability of the company to meet its short-term obligations but also judges the probability of its continue ability to meet all of its financial obligations in future Trade payables are particularly interested in the firm’s ability to meet their 119 claims over a very short period of time Their analysis will therefore: evaluate the firm’s liquidity position For lenders-suppliers of long term debt are concerned with the firm’s long term solvency and survival They analyze the firm’s profitability over a period of time, its ability to generate cash, to be able to pay interest and repay the principal and the relationship between various sources of funds or capital structure relationships Long term analysts analyze the historical financial statements to assess its future solvency and profitability For investors who haven’t invested their money in the firm’s shares are interested about the firm’s earnings; as such they concentrate on the analysis of the firm’s present and future profitability They are also interested in the firm’s capital structure to ascertain its influences on firm’s earnings and risk They also evaluate the efficiency of the management and determine whether a change is needed or not However, in some large companies, the shareholders’ interest is limited to decide whether to buy, sell or hold the shares For labor unions, analyze the FS to assess whether it can presently afford a way they increase and whether it can absorb a way to increase through increase productivity or by raising the prices And for others: the economists, researchers, etc analyze the FS to study the present business and economic conditions 120 The government agencies need it for price regulations, taxation and other similar purposes UNIT 10 10.1 Trade Blocs You may recall from the previous episode on the World Trade Organization, formerly known as GATT, the process of coming to agreement with over 150 countries involved is a long and arduous journey, with every round taking longer and longer to complete Given that, some countries are finding it more expedient to work in smaller groups, usually with neighbors, to eliminate trade barriers But even in smaller groups, there’s a spectrum of types of trade blocs A trade bloc is a group of countries which trade with one another, but they have an agreement among members to reduce trade barriers with one another The differences among the types of trade blocs come from both internal rules (that is, rules among the member countries) and external rules or dealings with nonmembers Let me show you The lowest level of commitment to trade barrier reduction is a preferential trade area, where members lower, but not eliminate, barriers among themselves Dealings with nonmembers are not addressed, so member countries maintain 121 policies of their own choosing with regard to nonmember countries The next level of commitment is a free trade area, where member countries agree to eliminate trade barriers among members, but continue to maintain independent policies in their dealing with nonmember countries An example of free trade area is NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement, where Canada, Mexico and the US have agreed to eliminate the barriers among themselves, but each maintains independent policy when trading with other areas of the world The third type of trade bloc is a customs union, where member countries not only eliminate internal trade barriers, but they also adopt common policies for trade barriers on any nonmembers For example, Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus formed a customs union in 2010 Those countries are eliminating trade barriers among themselves, but would agree to some common set of trade standards on anyone who is not in their group After the custom union, trade blocs begin to address the flow not only of goods and services but also the flow of resources, like labor In a common market, members eliminate internal trade barriers, adopt common external trade barriers, and allow free movement of resources among the member countries 122 10.2 Exchange rate Exchange rate is the value at which one currency may be converted into another The exchange rate is used when simply converting one currency to another such as for the purposes of travel to another country, or for engaging in speculation or trading in the foreign exchange market There are a wide variety of factors which influence the exchange rate, such as interest rates, inflation, and the state of politics and the economy in each country In finance, an exchange rate also known as a foreign-exchange rate, forex rate, FX rate between two currencies is the rate at which one currency will be exchanged for another It is also regarded as the value of one country’s currency in terms of another currency For example, an interbank exchange rate of 91 Japanese yen to the United States dollar means that 91 yen will be exchanged for each US dollar or that one US dollar will be exchanged for each 91 yen Exchange rates are determined in the foreign exchange market, which is open to a wide range of different types of buyers and sellers where currency trading is continuous: 24 hours a day except weekends The spot exchange rate refers to the current exchange rate The forward exchange rate refers to an exchange 123 rate that is quoted and trade today but for delivery and payment on a specific future date In the retail currency exchange market, a different buying rate and selling rate will be quoted by money dealers Most trades are to or from the local currency The buying rate is the rate at which money dealers will buy foreign currency, and the selling rate is the rate at which they will sell the currency The quoted rates will incorporate an allowance for a dealer's margin (or profit) in trading, or else the margin may be recovered in the form of a "commission" or in some other way 10.3 Vietnam’s accession to WTO Of preparations and negotiations, Viet Nam's accession to the WTO was completed in 2007, marking a turning point in the country's international economic integration Viet Nam's economy grows % per year trade liberalization and open door policies under WTO agreements have coincided with the rapid expansion of Viet Nam's economy Over the past ten years, despite the global economic crisis, Viet Nam's gross domestic product GDP has grown on average by percent per year, according to data from the World Bank, but still lower than the average of seven point one two percent, posted from 2001 to 2006 before becoming a part of the WTO The government sustained such high growth in part through fiscal expansion, 124 spending at least a third of the total state budget over the period This is higher than other regional countries leaving Vietnam behind its peers in the race for sustainable growth According to a report by the National Assembly's Standing Committee, doors open for trade Viet Nam's government considers exports key to taking advantage of its natural resources and abundant labor force Being a member of the WTO means fewer trade restrictions and brings greater export opportunities, and this expansion of exports allows domestic firms to tap larger economies Over the last 10 years, Viet Nam's trade with other countries has risen to new heights and export value has tripled Vietnam exports mostly raw materials or assembly oriented products such as garments, textiles and footwear, while the country has to import tech intensive equipment as well as processed products including electrical goods, metal, chemicals and automobiles Although exports have skyrocketed, the country has still posted trade deficits in six of the last ten years Capital finds its way production barriers as well as tax incentives have been used to attract foreign investment into infant domestic industries Together with trade, foreign direct investment FDI has been accompanied by the transfer of technology and managerial skills that are needed for the modernization of domestic industries 125 Lectures on ESP Listening For Advanced Bachelor Education Program -Chịu trách nhiệm xuất bản: GIÁM ĐỐC - TỔNG BIÊN TẬP Phan Ngọc Chính Chịu trách nhiệm biên soạn: Nguyen Thanh Huyen, MA Dang Phuong Mai, MA Biên tập: Trần Thị Hải Yến Trình bày bìa: Ban Quản lý Khoa học, Hưng Hà Biên tập kỹ thuật: Hưng Hà Đơn vị liên kết: Học viện Tài chính, số 58 Phố Lê Văn Hiến, Phường Đức Thắng, Bắc Từ Liêm, Hà Nội -In 500 cuốn, khổ 14.5 x 20.5cm Công ty TNHH Sản xuất Thương mại Hưng Hà Địa chỉ: Số 20, Hoàng Quốc Việt, Cầu Giấy, Hà Nội Số xác nhận ĐKXB: 2083-2020/CXBIPH/12-46/TC Số QĐXB: 118/QĐ-NXBTC ngày 11 tháng 06 năm 2020 Mã ISBN: 978-604-79-2436-3 In xong nộp lưu chiểu năm 2020 126 127 ... recession, leaving financial analysts to ponder over the imperfections / implications for the global economy Japan's economy unexpectedly shrank / shrunk for the second consecutively / consecutive... reform b An agreement or a settlement of a dispute that is reached by each side making concessions middle class c A plan or suggestion, especially a formal or written one, put forward for consideration... (owed to foreign lenders) Another common division of government debt is by duration until repayment is due Short term debt is generally considered to be for one year or less, and long term is for