Dictionary_of_Banking_and_Finance
.pdfinterim dividend |
186 |
International Monetary Market |
interim dividend / ntər m d v -
dend/ noun a dividend paid at the end of a half-year
interim payment / ntər mpe mənt/ noun a payment of part of a
dividend
interim report / ntər m r pɔ t/,
interim statement / ntər mste tmənt/ noun a report given at the
end of a half-year
intermediary / ntə mi diəri/ noun a person who is the link between people or organisations who do not agree or who are negotiating He refused to act as an intermediary between the two directors.
intermediate term / ntəmi diətt% m/ noun a period of one or two years
intermediation / ntəmi di e ʃ(ə)n/ noun the arrangement of finance or insurance by an intermediary
internal / n t% n(ə)l/ adjective 1. inside a company we decided to make an internal appointment we decided to appoint an existing member of staff to the post, and not bring someone in from outside the company 2. inside a country or a region
internal audit / n t% n(ə)l ɔ d t/ noun an audit carried out by a department inside the company
internal audit department / n-
t% n(ə)l ɔ d t d pɑ tmənt/ noun a department of a company which examines the internal accounting controls of that company
internal auditor / n t% n(ə)l ɔ d tə/ noun a member of staff who audits a company’s accounts
internal control / n t% n(ə)l kən-
trəυl/ noun a system set up by the management of a company to monitor and control the company’s activities
internal growth / n t% n(ə)l rəυθ/ noun the development of a company by growing its existing business with its own finances, as opposed to acquiring other businesses. Also called organic
growth (NOTE: The opposite is external growth.)
Internal Market / n t% n(ə)l mɑ k t/ noun the EU considered as one single market, with no tariff barriers between its member states
internal rate of return / n t% n(ə)l re t əv r t% n/ noun an average annual yield of an investment, where the interest earned over a period of time is the same as the original cost of the investment. Abbreviation IRR
Internal Revenue Service / n-
t% n(ə)l revənju s% v s/ noun US a government department which deals with tax. Abbreviation IRS
internal trade / n t% n(ə)l tre d/ noun trade between various parts of a country (NOTE: The opposite is exter-
nal trade.)
international / ntə n ʃ(ə)nəl/ adjective working between countries
International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development / ntə n ʃ(ə)nəl b ŋk fəri kənstr kʃ(ə)n ən d veləpmənt/
noun the official name of the World Bank. Abbreviation IBRD
International Commodities Clearing House / ntən ʃ(ə)nəl kə-
mɒd tiz kleər ŋ haυs/ noun a clearing house which deals in settlements of futures contracts in commodities and financial futures. Abbreviation ICCH
International Finance Corporation / ntən ʃ(ə)nəl fa n nskɔ pəre ʃ(ə)n/ noun a subsidiary of
the World Bank which makes loans to private companies. Abbreviation IFC
International Labour Organization / ntən ʃ(ə)nəl le bər ɔ əna -
ze ʃ(ə)n/ noun a section of the United Nations which tries to improve working conditions and workers’ pay in member countries. Abbreviation ILO
international law / ntən ʃ(ə)nəllɔ / noun laws referring to the way countries deal with each other
international lawyer / ntə-
n ʃ(ə)nəl lɔ jə/ noun a person who specialises in international law
International Monetary Fund
/ ntən ʃ(ə)nəl m n t(ə)ri f nd/ noun a type of bank which is part of the United Nations and helps member states in financial difficulties, gives financial advice to members and encourages world trade. Abbreviation IMF
International Monetary Market
/ ntən ʃ(ə)nəl m n t(ə)ri mɑ k t/ noun a part of the Chicago Mercantile
international monetary system |
187 |
introduction |
Exchange dealing in financial futures. Abbreviation IMM
international monetary system
/ ntən ʃ(ə)nəl m n t(ə)ri s stəm/ noun methods of controlling and exchanging currencies between countries
international money markets
/ ntən ʃ(ə)nəl m ni mɑ k ts/ plural noun markets, such as the Euromarket, the international market for lending or borrowing in eurocurrencies
international money order
/ ntən ʃ(ə)nəl m ni ɔ d ə/ noun a money order in a foreign currency which is payable to someone living in a foreign country
International Petroleum Exchange / ntən ʃ(ə)nəl pə trəυliəm
ks tʃe nd$/ noun a London commodity exchange dealing in crude oil and natural gas futures. Abbreviation IPE
international trade / ntən ʃ(ə)nəltre d/ noun trade between different countries
Internet / ntənet/ noun the global, public network of computers and telephone links that houses websites, allows email to be sent and is accessed with the aid of a modem Much of our business is done on the Internet. Internet sales form an important part of our turnover.He searched the Internet for information on cheap tickets to the USA. (NOTE:
The Internet uses the Internet Protocol (IP) as a communication standard.)
‘…they predict a tenfold increase in sales via internet or TV between 1999 and 2004’ [Investors Chronicle]
‘…in two significant decisions, the Securities and Exchange Board of India today allowed trading of shares through the Internet and set a deadline for companies to conform to norms for good corporate governance’ [The Hindu]
Internet bank / ntənet b ŋk/ noun a bank that allows it customers to havie credit in an account on the Internet, and use it to pay for purchases made on the Internet
Interstate Commerce Commission / ntəste t kɒm% s kə m ʃ(ə)n/
noun US a federal agency which regulates business activity involving two or more of the states in the US. Abbreviation ICC
intervene / ntə vi n/ verb to try to make a change in a situation in which you have not been involved before to
intervene in a dispute to try to settle a dispute
intervention / ntə venʃən/ noun the act of becoming involved in a situation in order to change it the central bank’s intervention in the banking crisisthe government’s intervention in the labour dispute
intervention mechanism / ntə-
venʃən mekən z(ə)m/ noun a method used by central banks in maintaining exchange rate parities (such as buying or selling foreign currency)
intervention price / ntə venʃ(ə)n pra s/ noun a price at which the EU will buy farm produce which farmers cannot sell, in order to keep prices high
inter vivos / ntə vi vəυs/ phrase a Latin phrase, ‘between living people’
inter vivos trust / ntə vi vəυs tr st/ noun a trust set up by one person for another living person
intestate / n testət/ adjective to die intestate to die without having made a will
COMMENT: When someone dies intestate, the property automatically goes to the parents or siblings of an unmarried person or, if married, to the surviving partner, unless there are children.
intraday / ntrəde / adjective within the day The stock hit a new record of 86 intraday on Friday.
intraday liquidity / ntrəde l -
kw d ti/ noun availability of cash in the banking system
intrinsic value / n tr ns k v lju / noun a value which exists as part of something, such as the value of an option (for a call option, it is the difference between the current price and the higher striking price)
introduce / ntrə dju s/ verb to make someone get to know somebody or something to introduce a client to bring in a new client and make them known to someone to introduce a new product on the market to produce a new product and launch it on the market
introduction / ntrə d kʃən/ noun 1. a letter making someone get to know another person I’ll give you an introduction to the MD – he is an old friend of mine. 2. the act of bringing an estab-
introductory offer |
188 |
investment income |
lished company to the Stock Exchange (i.e. getting permission for the shares to be traded on the Stock Exchange, used when a company is formed by a demerger from an existing larger company, and no new shares are being offered for sale)
introductory offer / ntrəd kt(ə)riɒfə/ noun a special price offered on a new product to attract customers
invalid / n v l d/ adjective not valid or not legal This permit is invalid. The claim has been declared invalid.
invalidate / n v l de t/ verb to make something invalid Because the company has been taken over, the contract has been invalidated.
invalidation / n v l de ʃən/ noun the act of making invalid
invalidity / nvə l d ti/ noun the fact of being invalid the invalidity of the contract
inventory / nvənt(ə)ri/ noun 1. especially US all the stock or goods in a warehouse or shop to carry a high inventory to aim to reduce inventory
(NOTE: The UK term is stock.) 2. a list of the contents of a building such as a house for sale or an office for rent to draw up an inventory of fixtures and fittings to agree the inventory to agree that the inventory is correct verb to make a list of stock or contents
‘…a warehouse needs to tie up less capital in inventory and with its huge volume spreads out costs over bigger sales’ [Duns Business Month]
inventory control / nvənt(ə)ri kən trəυl/ noun especially US a system
of checking that there is not too much stock in a warehouse, but just enough to meet requirements
inventory financing / nvənt(ə)rifa n ns ŋ/ noun especially US the use of money from working capital to purchase stock for resale
inventory turnover / nvənt(ə)rit% nəυvə/ noun especially US the total
value of stock sold during a year, divided by the value of the goods remaining in stock
invest / n vest/ verb 1. to put money into shares, bonds, a building society, etc., hoping that it will produce interest and increase in value He invested all his money in unit trusts. She was advised to invest in real estate or in gov-
ernment bonds. to invest abroad to put money into shares or bonds in overseas countries 2. to spend money on something which you believe will be useful to invest money in new machinery to invest capital in a new factory
‘…we have substantial venture capital to invest in good projects’ [Times]
investigate / n vest e t/ verb to examine something which may be wrong
The Serious Fraud Office has been asked to investigate his share dealings.
investigation / n vest e ʃ(ə)n/ noun an examination to find out what is wrong They conducted an investigation into petty theft in the office.
investment / n vestmənt/ noun 1. the placing of money so that it will produce interest and increase in value
They called for more government investment in new industries. She was advised to make investments in oil companies. 2. a share, bond or piece of property bought in the hope that it will produce more money than was used to buy it he is trying to protect his investments he is trying to make sure that the money he has invested is not lost
‘…investment trusts, like unit trusts, consist of portfolios of shares and therefore provide a spread of investments’ [Investors Chronicle]
‘…investment companies took the view that prices had reached rock bottom and could only go up’ [Lloyd’s List]
investment adviser / n vestmənt əd va zə/ noun a person who advises people on what investments to make
investment bank / n vestmənt b ŋk/ noun US a bank which deals with the underwriting of new issues, and advises corporations on their financial affairs (NOTE: The UK term is issuing
house.)
investment environment / n-
vestmənt n va rənmənt/ noun the general economic situation in which an investment is made
investment fund / n vestmənt f nd/ noun a fund that invests in start-up companies or other new projects
investment grant / n vestməntrɑ nt/ noun a government grant to a company to help it to invest in new machinery
investment income / n vestməntnk m/ noun income (such as interest
investment magazine |
189 |
invoicing department |
and dividends) from investments. Compare earned income
investment magazine / n-
vestmənt m əzi n/ noun a magazine dealing with shares, unit trusts and other possible investments
Investment Management Regulatory Organisation / n vestməntm n d$mənt re jυlət(ə)ri ɔ əna -
ze ʃ(ə)n/ noun a self-regulatory organisation which regulates managers of investment funds, such as pension funds, now part of the FSA. Abbreviation IMRO
investment trust / n vestmənt tr st/ noun a company whose shares can be bought on the Stock Exchange and whose business is to make money by buying and selling stocks and shares
investor / n vestə/ noun a person who invests money
investor protection / n vestə prə-
tekʃ(ə)n/ noun legislation to protect small investors from unscrupulous investment brokers and advisers
Investors in Industry / n vestəz nndəstri/ plural noun a finance group
partly owned by the big British High Street banks, providing finance especially to smaller companies. Abbreviation 3i
invisible assets / n v z b(ə)lsets/ plural noun assets which have a value but which cannot be seen, e.g. goodwill or patents
invisible earnings / n v z b(ə)l% n ŋz/ plural noun foreign currency earned by a country by providing services, receiving interests or dividends, but not by selling goods
invisible exports / n v zəb(ə)lekspɔ ts/ plural noun services (such as
banking, insurance or tourism) which do not involve selling a product and which are provided to foreign customers and paid for in foreign currency (NOTE: The
opposite are visible exports.)
invisible imports / n v z b(ə)lmpɔ ts/ noun services (such as banking, insurance or tourism) which do not involve selling a product and which are provided by foreign companies and paid for in local currency (NOTE: The oppo-
site are visible imports.)
invisibles / n v z b(ə)lz/ plural noun invisible imports and exports
invisible trade / n v zəb(ə)l tre d/ noun trade involving invisible imports and exports (NOTE: The opposite is vis-
ible trade.)
invitation / nv te ʃ(ə)n/ noun an act of asking someone to do something to issue an invitation to someone to join the board They advertised the invitation to tender for a contract.
invite / n va t/ verb to ask someone to do something, or to ask for something to invite someone to an interview to invite someone to join the board to invite shareholders to subscribe a new issue to invite tenders for a contract
invoice / nvɔ s/ noun a note asking for payment for goods or services supplied your invoice dated November 10th to make out an invoice for £250 to settle or to pay an invoice They sent in their invoice six weeks late. the total is payable within thirty days of invoice the total sum has to be paid within thirty days of the date on the invoice verb to send an invoice to someone to invoice a customer we invoiced you on November 10th we sent you the invoice on November 10th
invoice clerk / nvɔ s klɑ k/ noun an office worker who deals with invoices
invoice discounting / nvɔ sd skaυnt ŋ/ noun a method of obtain-
ing early payment of invoices by selling them at a discount to a company which will receive payment of the invoices when they are paid. (The debtor is not informed of this arrangement, as opposed to factoring, where the debtor is informed.)
invoice price / nvɔ s pra s/ noun the price as given on an invoice, including any discount and VAT
invoicing / nvɔ s ŋ/ noun the work of sending invoices All our invoicing is done by computer. invoicing in triplicate the preparation of three copies of invoices
invoicing department / nvɔ s ŋ d pɑ tmənt/ noun the department in a
company which deals with preparing and sending invoices
involuntary |
190 |
item |
involuntary / n vɒlənt(ə)ri/ adjective not done willingly or deliberately
involuntary bankruptcy / n-
vɒlənt(ə)ri b ŋkr ptsi/ noun US an application by creditors to have a person or corporation made bankrupt
(NOTE: The UK term is compulsory winding up.)
inward / nwəd/ adjective towards the home country
inward bill / nwəd b l/ noun a bill of lading for goods arriving in a country
inward investment / nwəd n-
vestmənt/ noun investment from outside a country, as when a foreign company decides to set up a new factory there
inward mission / nwəd m ʃ(ə)n/ noun a visit to your home country by a group of foreign businesspeople
IOU noun ‘I owe you’; a signed document promising that you will pay back money borrowed to pay a pile of IOUs I have a pile of IOUs which need paying.
IPE abbreviation International Petroleum Exchange
IPO abbreviation initial public offering
IRA / a rə/ abbreviation US Individual Retirement Account
IRR abbreviation internal rate of return
irrecoverable / r k v(ə)rəb(ə)l/ adjective which cannot be recovered
irrecoverable debt / r -
k v(ə)rəb(ə)l det/ noun a debt which will never be paid
irredeemable / r di məb(ə)l/ adjective which cannot be redeemed
irredeemable bond / r di məb(ə)l bɒnd/ noun a government bond which has no date of maturity and which therefore provides interest but can never be redeemed at full value
irregular / re jυlə/ adjective not correct or not done in the correct way
The shipment arrived with irregular documentation. This procedure is highly irregular.
irregularities / re jυ l r tiz/ plural noun things which are not done in the correct way and which are possibly illegal to investigate irregularities in the share dealings
‘…the group, which asked for its shares to be suspended last week after the discovery of accounting irregularities, is expected to update investors about its financial predicament by the end of this week’ [Times]
irrevocable / revəkəb(ə)l/ adjective which cannot be changed
irrevocable acceptance / -
revəkəb(ə)l ək septəns/ noun acceptance which cannot be withdrawn
irrevocable letter of credit / -
revəkəb(ə)l letər əv kred t/ noun a letter of credit which cannot be cancelled or changed, except if agreed between the two parties involved
IRS abbreviation US Internal Revenue Service
IS abbreviation income support
ISA abbreviation individual savings account
issuance / ʃuəns/ noun an action of issuing new shares or new bonds
issue / ʃu / noun an act of giving out new shares verb to put out or to give out to issue a letter of credit to issue shares in a new company to issue a writ against someone The government issued a report on London’s traffic.
‘…the rights issue should overcome the cash flow problems’ [Investors Chronicle]
‘…the company said that its recent issue of 10.5 per cent convertible preference shares at A$8.50 a share has been oversubscribed’ [Financial Times]
issued capital / ʃu d k p t(ə)l/ noun an amount of capital which is given out as shares to shareholders
issued price / ʃu d pra s/, issue price / ʃu pra s/ noun the price of
shares in a new company when they are offered for sale for the first time
issuer / ʃuə/ noun a financial institution that issues credit and debit cards and maintains the systems for billing and payment
issuing / ʃu ŋ/ adjective which organises an issue of shares
IT abbreviation information technology
item / a təm/ noun 1. something for sale we are holding orders for out-of-stock items we are holding orders for goods which are not in stock
Please find enclosed an order for the following items from your catalogue. 2. a piece of information items on a balance sheet item of expenditure goods
itemise |
191 |
itemised statement |
or services which have been paid for and appear in the accounts 3. a point on a list we will now take item four on the agenda we will now discuss the fourth point on the agenda
itemise / a təma z/, itemize verb to make a detailed list of things Itemising the sales figures will take about two days.
itemised account / a təma zd ə-
kaυnt/ noun a detailed record of money paid or owed
itemised invoice / a təma zdnvɔ s/ noun an invoice which lists each item separately
itemised statement / a təma zdste tmənt/ noun a bank statement
where each transaction is recorded in detail
J
J curve / d$e k% v/ noun a line on a graph shaped like a letter ‘J’, with an initial short fall, followed by a longer rise (used to describe the effect of a falling exchange rate on a country’s balance of trade)
jeep mortgage / d$i p mɔ d$/ noun US same as graduated payment mortgage (informal)
job /d$ɒb/ noun 1. an order being worked on We are working on six jobs at the moment. The shipyard has a big job starting in August. 2. regular paid work She is looking for a job in the computer industry. He lost his job when the factory closed. Thousands of jobs will be lost if the factories close down. to give up your job to resign or retire from your work to look for a job to try to find work to retire from your job to leave work and take a pension to be out of a job to have no work
‘…he insisted that the tax advantages he directed toward small businesses will help create jobs’ [Toronto Star]
job analysis / d$ɒb ə n ləs s/ noun a detailed examination and report on the duties involved in a job
jobber / d$ɒbə/ noun 1. (stock) jobber formerly on the London Stock Exchange, a person who bought and sold shares from other traders 2. US a wholesaler
‘…warehouse clubs buy directly from manufacturers, eliminating jobbers and wholesale middlemen’ [Duns Business Month]
jobbing / d$ɒb ŋ/ noun (stock) jobbing formerly on the London Stock Exchange, the business of buying and selling shares from other traders
job classification / d$ɒb kl s f -
ke ʃ(ə)n/ noun the process of describing jobs listed in various groups
job creation scheme /d$ɒb kri-
e ʃ(ə)n ski m/ noun a govern-
ment-backed scheme to make work for the unemployed
job cuts / d$ɒb k ts/ plural noun reductions in the number of jobs
job description / d$ɒb d skr pʃən/ noun a description of what a job consists of and what skills are needed for it
The letter enclosed an application form and a job description.
job evaluation / d$ɒb v lju-
e ʃ(ə)n/ noun the process of examining different jobs within an organisation to see what skills and qualifications are needed to carry them out
jobless / d$ɒbləs/ plural noun people with no jobs, the unemployed (NOTE:
takes a plural verb)
‘…the contradiction between the jobless figures and latest economic review’ [Sunday Times]
job lot /d$ɒb lɒt/ noun 1. a group of miscellaneous items sold together
They sold the household furniture as a job lot. 2. a small parcel of shares traded on a Stock Exchange
job opportunities / d$ɒb ɒpə-
tju n tiz/ plural noun new jobs which are available The increase in export orders has created hundreds of job opportunities.
job performance / d$ɒb pə-
fɔ məns/ noun the degree to which a job is done well or badly
job satisfaction / d$ɒb s t s-
f kʃən/ noun an employee’s feeling that he or she is happy at work and pleased with the work he or she does
job security / d$ɒb s kjυər ti/ noun
1. the likelihood that an employee will keep his or her job for a long time or until retirement 2. a worker’s feeling that he has a right to keep his job, or that he will never be made redundant
job specification |
193 |
junior staff |
job specification / d$ɒbspes f ke ʃ(ə)n/ noun a very detailed
description of what is involved in a job
job title / d$ɒb ta t(ə)l/ noun the name given to the person who does a particular job Her job title is ‘Chief Buyer’.
joint /d$ɔ nt/ adjective 1. carried out or produced together with others
a joint undertaking 2. one of two or more people who work together or who are linked They are joint beneficiaries of the will. She and her brother are joint managing directors. The two countries are joint signatories of the treaty.
joint account / d$ɔ nt ə kaυnt/ noun a bank or building society account shared by two people Many married couples have joint accounts so that they can pay for household expenses.
joint-life annuity / d$ɔ nt la f ə-
njuəti/ noun an annuity which continues to pay an amount to a spouse after the main beneficiary dies
jointly / d$ɔ ntli/ adverb together with one or more other people to own a property jointly to manage a company jointly They are jointly liable for damages. jointly and severally liable liable both as a group and as individuals
joint management /d$ɔ ntm n d$mənt/ noun management done by two or more people
joint ownership /d$ɔ nt əυnəʃ p/ noun the owning of a property by several owners
joint-stock bank / d$ɔ nt stɒk b ŋk/ noun a bank which is a public company quoted on the Stock Exchange
joint-stock company / d$ɔ nt stɒkk mp(ə)ni/ noun formerly, a public company whose shares were owned by very many people (now called a Public Limited Company or Plc)
joint venture /d$ɔ nt ventʃə/ noun a situation where two or more companies join together for one specific large business project
journal / d$% n(ə)l/ noun a book with the account of sales and purchases made each day
judge /d$ d$/ noun a person who decides in a legal case The judge sent him to prison for embezzlement.
judgement / d$ d$mənt/, judgment noun a legal decision or official decision of a court
judgement debtor / d$ d$məntdetə/ noun a debtor who has been or-
dered by a court to pay a debt
judgement lien / d$ d$mənt li ən/ noun a court order putting a lien on the property of a judgement debtor
judicial /d$u d ʃ(ə)l/ adjective referring to the law
judicial processes /d$u d ʃ(ə)lprəυses z/ plural noun the ways in
which the law works
judicial review /d$u d ʃ(ə)l r vju / noun 1. the examination of a case a second time by a higher court because a lower court has acted wrongly 2. the examination of administrative decisions by a court
jumbo CD / d$ mbəυ si di / noun a certificate of deposit for a very large amount of money which is bought as an investment
jump /d$ mp/ noun a sudden rise a jump in the cost-of-living index There was a jump in unemployment figures in December. verb to go up suddenly
Oil prices have jumped since the war started. Share values jumped on the Stock Exchange.
jumpy / d$ mpi/ adjective nervous or excited the market is jumpy the stock market is nervous and share prices are likely to fluctuate
junior / d$u niə/ adjective less important than something else
junior capital / d$u niə k p t(ə)l/ adjective capital in the form of shareholders’ equity, which is repaid only after secured loans (called ‘senior capital’) have been paid if the firm goes into liquidation
junior mortgage / d$u niəmɔ d$/ noun a second mortgage
junior partner / d$u niə pɑ tnə/ noun a person who has a small part of the shares in a partnership
junior security s -
kjυər ti/ noun a security which is repaid after other securities
junior staff / d$u niə stɑ f/ noun people in less important positions in a company
junk |
194 |
jurisdiction |
junk /d$ ŋk/ noun rubbish, useless items
junk bond / d$ ŋk bɒnd/ noun a high-interest bond raised as a debenture on the security of a company which is the subject of a takeover bid
‘…the big US textile company is running deep in the red, its junk bonds are trading as low as 33 cents on the dollar’ [Wall Street Journal]
junk mail / d$ ŋk me l/ noun unsolicited advertising material sent through the post and usually thrown away immediately by the people who receive it
jurisdiction / d$υər s d kʃən/ noun
within the jurisdiction of the court in the legal power of a court
K
K abbreviation one thousand ‘salary: £20K+’ salary more than £20,000 per annum
keen /ki n/ adjective 1. eager or active
keen competition strong competition
We are facing some keen competition from European manufacturers. keen
demand wide demand There is a keen demand for home computers. 2. keen prices prices which are kept low so as to be competitive Our prices are the keenest on the market.
keep /ki p/ verb 1. to do what is necessary for something to keep an appointment to be there when you said you would be 2. to hold items for sale or for information to keep someone’s name on file to have someone’s name on a list for reference 3. to hold things at a certain level to keep spending to a minimum We must keep our mailing list up to date. The price of oil has kept the pound at a high level. Lack of demand for typewriters has kept prices down. (NOTE: keeping – kept)
keep back / ki p b k/ verb to hold on to something which you could give to someone to keep back information or to keep something back from someone to keep £10 back from someone’s salary
keep up / ki p p/ verb to hold at a certain high level We must keep up the turnover in spite of the recession. She kept up a rate of sixty words per minute for several hours.
Keogh plan / ki əυ pl n/ noun US a private pension system allowing self-employed businesspeople and professionals to set up pension and retirement plans for themselves
kerb market / k% b mɑ k t/, kerb trading / k% b tre d ŋ/ noun an unof-
ficial after-hours market in shares, bonds or commodities
key /ki / noun the part of a computer or typewriter which you press with your fingers There are sixty-four keys on the keyboard. adjective important a key factor key industries key personnel a key member of our management team She has a key post in the organisation. We don’t want to lose any key staff in the reorganisation.
‘…he gave up the finance job in September to devote more time to his global responsibilities as chairman and to work more closely with key clients’ [Times]
keyboard / ki bɔ d/ noun the part of a computer or other device with keys which are pressed to make letters or figures verb to press the keys on a keyboard to type something She is keyboarding our address list.
keyboarder / ki bɔ də/ noun a person who types information into a computer
keyboarding / ki bɔ d ŋ/ noun the act of typing on a keyboard Keyboarding costs have risen sharply.
key holding /ki həυld ŋ/ noun an important block of shares owned by a single investor, which is large enough to influence the decisions of the board of directors
key money / ki m ni/ noun a premium paid when taking over the keys of a flat or office which you are renting
keypad / ki p d/ noun a small keyboard
key-person insurance / ki p% s(ə)n n ʃυərəns/ noun an insurance
policy taken out to cover the costs of replacing an employee who is particularly important to an organisation if he or she dies or is ill for a long time
key rate /ki re t/ noun an interest rate which gives the basic rate on which other rates are calculated (e.g. the former bank base rate in the UK, or the