General Awareness Handout

8/14/2019 General Awareness Handout

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GENERAL AWARENESS HANDOUT

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CareerForum/GK Handout/Vol 2/70022170 2

S. No. Topics Page number

1. Important Facts and Information 3

2. Current Affairs Information 9

2 Few facts related to World Trade 11

3. Mutual Fund Companies in India 16

4. Terms used in Mutual Funds 20

5. Books written by CEOs of different companies 31

6. Sample Questions and Answers 32


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CareerForum/GK Handout/Vol 2/700221703

Important Facts and Information

This bank was renamed in 1955 and thus came State Bank of India into existence. We are talkingabout Imperial Bank Of India

The Chairman of Interstate council (ISTC) that came into existence in June 2005 Kamalnath Posco steel plant has been finalized at Paradeep (Orissa) Delite is the name of the milk additive product that belongs top the stable of Cadbury Empowered group of ministers that was looking into the Dabhol settlement issue was headed by

Pranab Mukherjee

WTO is headquatered in Geneva The 1st MD of IMF is Camille Gutt This personality is associated with the foundation of World Economic Forum (WEF) Klaus Schwab Bulls your win. Bears you win is the ad-campaign of Kotak Life Insurance Not Allowed to Cry is a book authored by Ingrid Albuquerque Solomon. This book deals with the life

history of the Birlas This car model has been declared as the Car of the Year 2006 by BS Motoring - Swift Originally, Duracell battery is the brand of Gillette Innova is a car model that belongs to Toyota Motors World Economic Forums annual summit took place in January 2006 at Davos Babool , Odonil, & Sani fresh are the famous brands that are now owned by Dabur CII brand of the year 2005 is Nokia Frito-lays is an associated company of Pepsico Asian Development Bank HQ Manila Development & Nationhood is the name of the book written by Lord Meghnad Desai

Toyotas brand ambassador Aamir Khan President of World Bank Paul Wolfowitz Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo is the present CEO of Nokia The CEO of Google Inc.- Eric Schmidt The year in which the regulator of the stock market in India was established was-1988 The Chairman of Oil major Royal Dutch Shell Plc. who was also the head of Nokia Jorma Ollila NIIT Technologies Ltd is in 50:50 joint venture with Switzerland-based human resource company -

Adecco SA

Stock Exchange of India which transformed itself into a corporate entity is BSE (Bombay StockExchange)

Phantom is a car launched by- Rolls Royce Motor Cars The SAFTA became operational from 1st Jan 2006 This bank is named as the first fully Indian bank Punjab National Bank Capitalist tool is the punch line of Forbes Nelco , Nelite systems are the names of the companies that belong to the stable of Tata Group The topmost brand of the world for the 4th consecutive year according to Interbrand is Coca Cola Winning is the book written by- Jack & Suzy Welch Glamour is bike model of Hero Honda Motors Ltd. CRD 100 is name of bike by LML


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Speed is the name of fuel variant that belongs to BPCL Anil K. Agarwal is the President of ASSOCHAM (The Associated Chambers of Commerce and

Industry of India)

Presidential Order by Chilean govt. was given to Rajesh Hukku Star is bike model by TVS Motors Jagdish Tytler , who has been indicted by justice Nanavati Commission report, was the minister of

state for-Non-Resident Affairs

Nanavati Commission was set up in the year-2000 "Gavai was the person responsible for the maintenance of law and order in Delhi", the recently

released Nanavati Commission into the 1984 anti-sikh riots commented. PG Gavai who was blamed

by the commission for the lapse during the riot in the capital was- the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi.

This country's Upper House of Parliament voted down a legislation to divide and sell the country'spostal service, prompting its prime minister to threaten dissolution of the lower bases of Parliament.

This country is Japan

Hugo Chavez who has dismissed cooperation with the US Drug Enforcement Administration,accusing the latter of spying against his government is the president of-Venezuela

Peter Jennings, the TV News 'superstar' who died of lung cancer, represented- ABC News Kolkata is set to eliminate one of its enduring symbols, which is-Hand-pulled rickshaws The post of Sajjan Kumar in Nanavati Commission into the 1984 anti-Sikh riots was -Chairman, Delhi

Rural Development Board

Athlete Neelam Singh who tested positive for banned drugs at the Helsinki World AthleticsChampionship, plays - Discus Throw

The Olympic champion who won the 200 and 100 meter crowns at the Helsinki Athletics WorldChampionship is - Justin Gatlin

Xplore is the new weekend lifestyle supplement of-The Times of India Osleidys Menendez, who won the gold medal in javelin throw at Helsinki athletics, hails from-Cuba After claiming ownership of Taj Mahal, the Waqf Board is now claiming ownership of-Bibi Ka

Maqbara, Aurangabad

This public personality is in the eye of a storm for his love of expensive cowboy boots-as much as thathis opponents are already talking of 'Bootgate' scandal - Arnold Schwarzenegger

Chairman of the selection committee for Arjuna Awards is - Geet Sethi According to media reports, the UPA government had to shelve its plan to seek the passage of

Women's Reservation bill in the Parliament in August primarily because of the opposition of-Lalu

Prasad Yadav

The recommendation of these two cricketers have been rejected for Arjuna Award-Yuvraj Singh andMohammad Kaif

According to a legislation introduced in the Lok Sabha, you can now sport the Tricolour on certainclothes and accessories. The ban still holds on-Cushions

USA is the country which is not a part of Airbus A 380 The bond/investment, which is not a part of Section 88 of the Income Tax offering rebate - ONGC

shares

The author of the line Just do it -Dan Wieden Name the new name of ICICI Infotech - 3I Infotech


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Club world, more beds, more places, more often is the baseline of an advertisement. The companywhich boasts of this - British Airways

The chairman of the committee formed on the future of World Trade Organization - Peter D.Sutherland

The 141-nation Kyoto protocol aims to break a rise in temperatures widely blamed on mountinghuman emissions of heat trapping gases that could trigger droughts and floods, raise sea levels and

wipe out thousands of species by the year - 2100

Name the country, which has savings to GDP ratio of 40%, and the highest saving rate in the world China

The country, which has manufactured the worlds largest noodle packet, secured a place in GuinnessBook of World Record - Indonesia

The Indian who is among the top ten in the Forbes Midas 100 list of venture capitalists - Ram Shriram This Indian Institute of Management has won the Corporate Research Award - IIM, Indore. The Indian Finance Minister who became the president of India - R. Venkataraman Heinrich Von Pierer was the Chief Executive officer of a company. He is considered the most

influential chairman in Germany. Recently he retired from the Company Siemens

Mr. N. Balasubramanium has been promoted to the post of CMD from the post of deputy M.D. Namethe organization - SIDBI

The company which advertises Who says its lonely up there?- Satyam Computers This actor is related/worked for Project Hope - Vivek Oberoi News you can use is the baseline of which news channel? - NDTV Profit Prof. Finn E. Kydland and Prof. Edward C. Prescott are associated with the field of -Economics The satellite channel which has the baseline All day, All year, All viewers? Discovery Channel. The chairman of Godhra Fire Accident Committee - U.C. Banerjeee The Chinese chief who introduced market reforms and capitalism to China - Zhao Ziyang Kum Karo Tax, Kal Karo relax is an adrenaline increasing quote. Name the company which uses it

in its advertisement - Max New York Life

Name the country where the worlds second largest port is located in terms of freight volume in 2004after Singapore - China, Shanghai

After buying which companys household goods will the giant Procter and Gamble be the worldsbiggest consumer products company? The deal is worth $ 57 billion - Gillette

This actor and producer has started the acting academy Actor prepares - Anupam Kher The company who has acquired the Balsara Businesses for Rs. 143 Crores Dabur India Ltd. How many stars are there in the flag of European Union? Twelve (12) The Indian Bank which had taken majority stake in Mauritius-based Indian Ocean International bank

SBI India International Leather Fair 2007 will be held at - Chennai Who is the new chief of Research and Analysis Wing ? P. K. Hormis Tharakan ULIP is an insurance plan launched by?- UTI Mr Eric Leblanc is the new Managing Director of -Volvo India Ltd. The tyre group sponsors Narain Karthikeyan, the formula 1 car racer? J.K. tyres. Amazing Mileage is the ad-line for this group - Bajaj This Hollywood actor and comedian is known for the Naked Gun Trilogy -Leslie Nielsen


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If Sony makes PS2, who made Dreamcast? Seagull The popular mobile phone brand Nokia is from which country? Finland Name Chinas first private airline that was launched on March 10, 2005 -Okay Name the software company acquired by Microsoft - Groove Networks Sunfeast, John Players and Aashirvad are the products promoted by this Brand - ITC Tadiram Telecom has entered into a strategic alliance with BPL Telecom to sell enterprise products.

Name the country where Tadiram has its base - Israel

Name the Managing Director of Bajaj Auto - Rajiv Bajaj Name the country, which has not applied stem cell technology particularly in regenerating diseased

cells - Indonesia

The shortest Shakespearean play with just 1770 lines - The Comedy of Errors Glenmark laboratories will merge with this biopharmaceutical and research-driven company - TASC

Pharma

The place at which The International Conference on Terrorism was held and The theme of theconference was Democracy, Terrorism and Security - Madrid

Name the country which is the worlds most competitive, according to the World Economic Forum(India ranks at 55). - Finlandb

Berger Paints has set up its first overseas venture in this country to manufacture decorative paints -Russia

Sarva Guna Sampanna is the catch line used by this company to promote its brand - Hero Honda The chairman of Sony Corporation - Mr. Howard Stringer Jackpot! Deluxe Styling. More Mileage. Less Price. The jackpot among the bikes. This is the ad-line

used for the product - Bajaj - CT 100

The National Legal Literacy Mission which aims at marking justice more accessible and affordable tothe downtrodden will have tenure from 2005 to - 2010

Mr. Willie Walsh is the new Chief Executive Officer, replacing Rod Eddington of - British Airways Name the only Indian player to have a signature line of her own for Lotto Sports Italia. The player will

be the fourth after Andre Agassi, Steffi Graff and Stephen Edberg- Sania Mirza

His first grand prix. And a billion fans already! This is the catch line used by the company -BharatPetroleum

The full form of MAPIN Market Participants and Investors Identification Number Give Punarjanama to your small TV is the buzz line for which advertisement Onida TV Start earning your second income at 40. Which Insurance Company for its policy Future Plus uses

this ad line? - LICI

The country famous car brands Saab and Volvo originally come from - Sweden In Pokemon, how is Misty known to the Japanese fans?- Kasumi Pay a small price to hold your head high. Even after retirement. The company which advocates these

lines in its advertisement is - HDFC standard life insurance

York International, the worlds biggest heating ventilation and AC company has tied up with thiscompany to boost sales - Videocon

Born into Brothels, a film which won the 77th annual Academy Award for the best documentaryfeature is a story of the children of sex worker of this country-India

This company sponsored the 50th Filmfare Awards - Swarup Group of Industries


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Name the Amendment to UN Framework Convention on Climate Change that came into force onFebruary 16, 2005 - Kyoto Protocol

This Asian country had left the Commonwealth in 1972 but rejoined in 1989?-Pakistan The poet of popular poem If holds the world record as the poem reprinted in more anthologies than

any other- Rudyard Kipling The Chief Managing Director of Microsoft India - Mr. Neelam Dhawan Paul Otellini is the Chief Executive Officer of this company-Intel Mr. Anil K. Khandelwal is the CMD of this public sector bank-Bank of Baroda Xover is the new automobile launched by this company -Tata Sarthak Bahuria is the new chairman of this group -IOC Mr. Supachai Panilehpakdi heads which organization -UNCTAD The new chairman of IDBI?-Mr. V. P. Shetty According to Economic Survey, GDP stands at __ percent.-6.9% Renault has joined hands with this company for making passenger cars -Mahindra and Mahindra

TAFE has bought tractor business of this group-Eicher Delta Steel Company, a Nigerian firm, has sold its 80% stake to this group - Ispat Group He headed the task force, which recommended the creation of a national fund for Strategic

Agricultural research-Dr. M. S. Swaminathan

The bank which has launched Bon Voyage, a convenient loan scheme for travelling -Oriental Bankof Commerce

The year in which Minnie Mouse made her debut with Mickey Mouse (In the film Steamboat Willie)-1938

Name the latest model car launched by Maruti - Suzuki Swift This company has started the Cyber Mom programme that enables homemakers to attain the same

wave length as their computer savvy kids and lap top carrying husbands - Reliance Infocomm

In this state VAT was introduced from April 1, 2005-Maharashtra The call sign which is used by Indian Airlines-Indair Mr. H. Lee Scott is the Chief Executive Officer of this company Wal-Mart International Name the Satellite launched by PSLV and is useful in preparing atlases, monitoring the growth of

cities, laying ring roads and so on-CARTOSAT

Name the organization which sponsored the project of development of mobile computers Mobilesand Softcomp to Encore Software-CSIR

Who is the Chief Election commissioner of India? Mr. N. Gopalaswami Mr. Saul Bellow, who died in Massachusetts was a Novelist Name the organization which has 58.5% holding in Crisil, Indias biggest rating agency - Standard and

Poor Who among the following is the chairman of NASSCOM?- Dr. S. Ramadorai Name the task force which is headed by Sunita Narain-Tiger task force Name the country which gives Knight of the order of Arts and Letters- France Name the country which has recently adopted ban anti-terrorism law- Britain Name the country with which India has decided to pursue a free trade agreement and set up a team to

negotiate the terms-Mauritius


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In April 2005, the government launched National Rural Electrification Programme under which all thevillages would be electrified by the year -2009

Name the country which has been admitted to G-20-Uruguay Name the country with which China has decided to launch the joint production of JF-17 fighter aircraft

Pakistan The Sun logo, Sun tech days, Solaris, Java, Jini these are the names registered under/of: - Sun

Microsystems Inc.

Mr. Mahendra K. Sanghi is the president of this association ASSOCHAM Name the team that won the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona. McLAren Mercedes K.R. What N.R. Narayan Murthy is to Infosys, James Gosling and Jeff Jackson are to? Sun Microsystems Mr. David Helenaik is the new vice chairman of this organization Morgan Stanley. This Hindu religious scriptures name literally translates to sitting down near Upanishad The company, originally based in Leadenhall Street, London, had a profound impact on the history of

India British East India Company

This capital city has the sobriquet Paris of Latin America Buenos Aires

The father of Pegasus, the winged horse Poseidon The CEO and chairman of General ElectricJeffrey R. Immelt An Indian company, owned by Purendu Chatterjee, has tied up with this Dutch company for $5.7

billion, the highest ever in India Basell (Royal Dutch BASF combine)

The chief financial officer of the White House Gopal Khanna VSNL has tied up with this company to provide enhanced global connectivity to Indian customers in

the IT-enabled services segmentCable and Wireless, Asia

This airline has adopted the Common Man as its mascot or ambassador Air Deccan For tsunami aid, the IDA has provided $465 million for the reconstruction and recovery of this Indian

stateTamil Nadu

Name the first Indian company to join AUTOSAR Infosys This group of countries is using MARSIS for finding water on Mars Europe The founder of the giant conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway Warren E. Buffet Mr. Junichiro Koizumi is the Prime Minister of this country Japan


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Current Affairs Information

1) The winner of Durand Cup 2005 isArmy XI.

2) Orange is the name of the cellular service provider fromHutchison Max Telecom Ltd

3) The name by which the car Indica is known in UK isCity Rover.4) The name of the space shuttle in which Kalpana Chawla was travelling and that met with a fatal

accident is Columbia

5) She is the richest woman in India and is the owner of Biocon InternationalKiran Mazoomdar Shaw

6) The amendment that added the word secular to the Indian constitution is42.

7) The costliest city in the world as on June 2006 isMoscow

8) The venue of the first Afro Asian Games is Hyderabad.

9) Hutchison has a tie up with Essar.

10) My Life is a famous work ofBill Clinton.

11) Who is the Chairman of the Censor Board of IndiaSharmila Tagore

12) The seat of the Lok Sabha cannot remain vacant for more than a period ofSix months.

13) Wind 125 is the name of the bike model owned byBajaj Auto Ltd.

14) Binaca is the name of the tooth paste brand owned byDabur.

15) The present Chairman of National Dairy Development Board (NDDB)Amrita Patel

16) You would associate Akio Morita with the establishment ofSony Corporation.

17) The President of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) isR Seshasayi

18) Essar Group is owned by the Ruias

19) The name of India's first electric car is Reva

20) Titan whose photographs were received recently on earth is the satellite ofSaturn

21) The MD of Aventis Pharma India is Dr. SHAILESH AYYANGAR

22) The venue of the National Games 2005 wasAssam

23) Toyota Motors has an Indian tie up withKirloskar Motors24) Miss World 2005 hails fromIceland

25) The Chairperson of the National Commission for Women IndiaDr.Girija Vyas

26) Coldarin is a famous drug fromJohnson & Johnson

27) The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) is based atPune

28) Europe's first lunar spacecraft that successfully cruised into orbit around the moon is named as

SMART-1

29) The FDI limit in the domestic airlines that has been altered up to49%

30) Discover is the name of a bike model fromBajaj Auto Ltd.

31) Lakshmi Narayan and Francisco Dsouza who were awarded with the Economic Times Entrepreneur

of 2005 award are the founder ofCognizant

32) Whisen is an airconditioner brand fromLG33) Maybach is the name of a car model that was launched in 2004. This car is fromDaimler Chrysler

India

34) Junglee that was sold to amazon.com for a record sum of $240 million was founded byRakesh

Mathur

35) This personality became the fastest man on earth as he clocked the shortest time for the 100 m sprint

event of the Olympics recently. Justin Gatlin

36) This company ranked on the top spot in the Indian market based on the market capitalizationONGC


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37) 'Provogue' brand of clothing is promoted byFardeen Khan

38) The Sterlite Industries has offered to buy the residual stake of 49% in Balco whose earlier acquisition

of the 51% stake of the same in 2001 was much-publicized news. Balco majors inAluminium

39) 'Live your dream' is the punchline associated withPolaris

40) Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is the newly appointed President ofPhilippines41) The first woman to reach space in a privately funded venture, recentlyAnousheh Ansari

42) This company bought Aircel, a cellular service provider promoted by C. Sivasankaran in a deal worth

Rs. 1,200 crore Hutch

43) This structure from India entered to the UNESCO's World Heritage list in 2004Victoria Teminus

Building

44) 'Travel and Living', a 24-hour channel is launched byDiscovery Channel

45) The Chairperson of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO)G. Madhavan Nair

46) The name of the mascots of the Athens Olympic Games 2004Athena and Phevos

47) Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) is headquartered atRome

48) Ryder Cup is associated with golf

49) This company's mutual fund has launched India's first media and entertainment fundReliance50) This personality is one of the creators of the Air India's mascot 'Maharaja'Bobby Kooka

51) The new Chairman of NASSCOM is Mr B. Ramalinga Raju

52) The President of the World BankPaul Wolfowitz

53) Being Indian is the name of a book written byPavan K. Verma

54) Connecting India is the punchline that you would associate withBSNL

55) According to Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), this is the biggest economy of the worldUSA

56) The percentage of Indian trade that is contributed by European Union (approximately)22%

57) Alcatel is famous telecom equipment major that hails fromFrance

58) This company has acquired espharma GmbH in a deal that is worth Rs. 49 croreWockhardt Ltd.

59) Between Hope and History is a famous work ofBill Clinton

60) The fundamental rights was deleted later by the 44th constitutional amendment - Right to property

61) Vienna is based on the banks ofDanube

62) According to the latest census, the rural literacy rate in India59.40%

63) Megasthenes visited the court ofChandragupta Maurya

64) Sales Tax is an example ofIndirect tax

65) The two countries signed a peace treaty under the banner of Camp David AccordIsrael and Egypt

66) In Jainism, Number of Tirthankars (sages) is there in all24

67) Mudrarakshasa is a very famous work ofVishakhadutta

68) India's first indigenously built submarineINS Shalki

69) 'The treaty of Versailles', that ultimately lead to the birth of United Nations, was signed in1919

70) The number of pairs of chromosomes in a normal human being is2371) The Constitution of India was adopted onNovember 26, 1949

72) Theosophical Society of India was founded byAnnie Besant

73) World's first acknowledged Super computer isCray-1

74) Number of members are nominated by the President of India in the Rajya Sabha12

75) The article deals with the impeachment of the President of IndiaArticle 61

76) Shergo is the name of the Parliament ofEthiopia

77) The maximum gap between the two sessions of the Parliament can be ofsix months

78) One of the languages not recognized by the United NationsGerman


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Few facts related to World Trade

1. TRIMS full form - Trade related Investment Measures.

2. The last Ministerial conference at Cancun was 5th edition.

3. New York has not been the venue of WTO ministerial conference

4. The classification of subsidies in different boxes of amber, blue, & green at WTO is done in the area

of - Agriculture.

5. The countrys 1st corporatised port is at - Ennore

6. Worlds biggest exporting nation - USA

7. The director general of WTO is - Pascal Lamy

8. Russia is not a member of WTO.

9. Iran, Iraq & North Korea (president Bushs axis of evil) - have no formal association with WTO.

10. EPCG full form Export Promotion Capital Goods scheme.

11. Cairns Group is a group of countries that accounts for more than 20% of global exports of

Agriculture.

12. Apex body regulating foreign trade in India is - Director General of Foreign Trade.

13. The US corporation which acquired the basmati patent was - Rice Tech.

14. A currency that has a continuing high level of demand , relative to supply , in the market of foreign

exchange is often called as - Hard Currency.

15. WTO is criticized for being anti-democratic. But the fact is contrary to it, is that, --every one, of the

148 members, has a veto power over changing rules.

16. The stocks of commodities held by the countries or international organizations to moderate the pricefluctuations are called - buffer stocks.

17. Tarapore committee is associated with capital account convertibility.

18. Indias forex reserve stood at $194.410 billion on March 9, 2007.


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19. A small country that is economically dependent on a single export commodity & is typically governed

by a dictator or armed forces is known as - banana republic.

20. Swarmala entertainment a music company is a joint venture between - BMG & SONY

21. Media content & communication service (MCCS) is a broadcaster of which news channel - Star News

22. The worlds no.1 tobacco & cigarette company - Philip Morris

23. Strepsils, Clearasil, Lactocalamine. These brands belong to - Boots Piramal Health Care

24. Advertising agency SAATCHI & SAATCHI belongs to - Omnicom

25. New president of Iraq - Jalal Talabani

26. Sir Creek is a contentious issue between - India & Pakistan

27. ICC player of the year is named after - Garfield Sobers

28. Anti cancer drug Iressa is owned by - Astrazeneca

29. This company has acquired 25% stake in royal Dutch shells LNG business in India -Total Gaz

Electricite

30. BONUX, RINDEX, MR.CLEAN are well known detergent brand by - P&G

31. Indias #1 private Insurance company - ICICI Prudential.

32. Nivea brand is owned by - Beiersdorf

33. Worlds largest spirits company - Diageo

34. The paint company that has forayed into insurance broking business - Berger Paints

35. HLL launched toilet soap brand Liril in 1975

36. The cigarette brand Maxus is launched by - odfrey Philips

37. Nickelodeon a well known childrens channel belongs to - Viacom Inc. media group

38. Force10 brand of cigarette is launched in international market by - Godfrey Phillips.

39. Who won the US India Biz leadership Award 2006? Jignesh Shah

40. Spiritual channel Jagran is promoted by - Zee TV


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41. A magazine for senior citizens under the name HARMONY is published by Reliance group.

42. Which company has picked up AT&Ts 33% stake in Idea Cellular? - Singapore Technologies Media

(STT) and Telekom Malaysia.

43. HLL has phased out which of the following brands. - International Lux.

44. The company is the worlds largest supplier of HIV AIDS drug. - Glaxo.

45. the shaving giant Gillette has signed which personality? - David Beckham.

46. India will overtake China as the most populace country by which year? 2035.

47. The finance ministry has abolished the mandatory central value added tax for - textiles.

48. Annual FDI inflows in China are 5 % of its GDP. In the case of India it is - 1%

49. The sector that contributes the highest in Govt. service tax collections - telephones

50. Indias software exports in 2005 were - US $ 17.5 billion

51. According to Union budget 2004-2005 revenue deficit of Central Govt. will be reduced to zero by

which year? - 08-09

52. Abhijit Sen committee is related to which of the following sectors? Food grain policy

53. Blue Box, Green Box and Amber Box are the some frequently used terms in WTO parleys. The

terms are related to - Agriculture Subsidies.

54. The US has imposed anti-dumping duty on which of the following Indian products? Shrimps

55. Despite developing countries opposition, one of the four Singapore issues has found its way into the

agenda. The issue in question is - trade facilitation

56. Due to poor monsoon, the New Delhi-based think tank NCAER has brought down the GDP growth

projection for 04-05 to - 6.54%

57. Malegam Committee is related to - Initial Public Offering

58. A report prepared by the World Bank has put India among the top 10 reforming nations in the world.

The report has adjudged which country as the most favourable to start and operate business? New

Zealand

59. Indias ranking in UNCTADs outward FDI performance index - 61


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60. Strong rupee against foreign currencies damages - Exports

61. The personality who coined the term Ambush Marketing - Jerry Welsh

62. Indias 1st

LNG terminal has been established at - Dahej (Gujrat)

63. The term Chin Music which is recently coined is related to - cricket

64. An indigenous state-of-the-art Integrated Electronic Warfare (IEW) system - SAMYUKTA

65. The iron pillar at Mehrauli in Delhi was made during the reign of the - Guptas

66. The radioactive isotope of Hydrogen is called as - Deuterium

67. The new alluvial soil found in Ganga valley river banks is called - Khadar soil

68. Indias largest inland lake is located in - Orissa

69. The director of the movie The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King that received 11 Oscars, is

- Peter Jackson

70. The 73rd Amendment of the Indian Constitution deals with - Panchayati Raj

71. Article 324 deals with the establishment of election commission

72. The least populous state in india is - Sikkim

73. The 44th amendment of constitution abolished - the right to property.

74. Headquarters of IMF are at - Washington DC

75. A Governor of Indian state retires at the age of - Never retires

76. SIM -- Subscriber Identity Module

77. The Golden Gate is a book authored by Vikram Seth

78. WTO, ITU, UNCTAD are all headquartered at Geneva

79. Niblic & eagle are terms associated with? Golf

80. The article associated with J & K is - 370

81. The film that gave Philip Seymour Hoffman the Oscar for best acting this year - Capote


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82. Wimbledon 2006 champion (Women) - Amelie Mauresmo

83. In human development report, India occupies which rank in education? 145

84. The Indian state which granted 5% reservation for Muslims in educational institutions (This was later

quashed by High Court) - AP

85. The author whose autobiographical book DWIKHANDITA was banned in Bengal recently. Taslima

Nasreen

86. Straight from the Heart is the autobiography of - Kapil Dev.

87. The sportsperson who was asked to pay 5700 Euros for his/her role in the financial collapse of the

website Sportgate - Boris Becker

88. The youngest parliamentarian in the current Lok Sabha is Sachin Pilot

89. The number of members of Vajpayees council of ministers who lost the elections in the last Lok

Sabha elections 26.

90. The new channel on which Tarun Tejpal & Maneka Gandhi would be anchors is ---India TV (Rajat

Sharmas)

91. Karnam Malleshwari, the bronze medal winner in weightlifting in 2000 Olympics, mysteriously pulled

out of competition in 63 kg category.

92. The Hollywood actor who topped the Forbes celebrity power list - Tom Cruise

93. Pavitr Prabhakar is an Indian avatar of which comic hero? Spiderman

94. The Indian visionary who coined the term PURA, that is Providing Urban amenities in Rural Areas in

early 2004 - President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

95. After NASA Corporation, ENERGIYA has set its eye on Mars, for sending manned mission by year

2014. ENERGIYA Belongs to RUSSIA.

96. The TV character who was featured on a postal envelope the first fictional character has been given

this honor Jassi of Jassi jaisi koi nahi.

97. Indias entry in Oscars in the year 2006 Rang De Basanti

98. Union Agri-minister Sharad Pawar contested for BCCI President post as a candidate from - Punjab


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99. The US scientists Andrew Z. Fire and Craig C. Mello have won the 2006 Nobel Prize for Medicine for

their discovery of RNA interference - gene silencing by double-stranded RNA

100. The 10th SAF Games (South Asian Games) was held in - Sri Lanka,Colombo

101. Articles of the constitution of India provides constitutional remedies for enforcement of Fundamental

RightsArticle 32

102. In 2010, FIFA (Football) World cup tournament will be held in - South Africa

103. Shunglu Committee is related to - IIM Fee-cut issue

104. The method of constitutional amendment is provided in - Article 368

Mutual Fund Companies in India

The concept of mutual funds in India dates back to the year 1963. The era between 1963 and 1987 marked

the existence of only one mutual fund company in India with Rs. 67bn assets under management (AUM), by

the end of its monopoly era, the Unit Trust of India (UTI). By the end of the 80s decade, a few other mutual

fund companies in India took their position in mutual fund market.

The new entries of mutual fund companies in India were SBI Mutual Fund, Canbank Mutual Fund, Punjab

National Bank Mutual Fund, Indian Bank Mutual Fund, Bank of India Mutual Fund.

The succeeding decade showed a new horizon in Indian mutual fund industry. By the end of 1993, the total

AUM of the industry was Rs. 470.04 bn. The private sector funds started penetrating the fund families. In thesame year, the first Mutual Fund Regulations came into existence with re-registering all mutual funds except

UTI. The regulations were further given a revised shape in 1996.

Kothari Pioneer was the first private sector mutual fund company in India which has now merged with

Franklin Templeton. Just after ten years with private sector players penetration, the total assets rose up to

Rs. 1218.05 bn. Today there are 33 mutual fund companies in India.

Major Mutual Fund Companies in India

ABN AMRO Mutual Fund

ABN AMRO Mutual Fund was set up on April 15, 2004 with ABN AMRO Trustee (India) Pvt. Ltd.as the Trustee Company. The AMC, ABN AMRO Asset Management (India) Ltd. was incorporated

on November 4, 2003. Deutsche Bank A G is the custodian of ABN AMRO Mutual Fund.

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund is the joint venture of Aditya Birla Group and Sun Life Financial. Sun

Life Financial is a global organisation that evolved in 1871 and is being represented in Canada, the

US, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia and Bermuda apart from India. Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund


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follows a conservative long-term approach to investment. Recently it crossed AUM of Rs. 10,000

crores.

Bank of Baroda Mutual Fund (BOB Mutual Fund)

Bank of Baroda Mutual Fund or BOB Mutual Fund was set up on October 30, 1992 under the

sponsorship of Bank of Baroda. BOB Asset Management Company Limited is the AMC of BOBMutual Fund and was incorporated on November 5, 1992. Deutsche Bank AG is the custodian.

HDFC Mutual Fund

HDFC Mutual Fund was set up on June 30, 2000 with two sponsors namely Housing Development

Finance Corporation Limited and Standard Life Investments Limited.

HSBC Mutual Fund

HSBC Mutual Fund was set up on May 27, 2002 with HSBC Securities and Capital Markets (India)

Private Limited as the sponsor. Board of Trustees, HSBC Mutual Fund acts as the Trustee Company of

HSBC Mutual Fund.

ING Vysya Mutual Fund

ING Vysya Mutual Fund was set up on February 11, 1999 with the same named Trustee Company. It

is a joint venture of Vysya and ING. The AMC, ING Investment Management (India) Pvt. Ltd. wasincorporated on April 6, 1998.

Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund

The mutual fund of ICICI is a joint venture with Prudential Plc. of America, one of the largest life

insurance companies in the USA. Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund was set up on 13th of October, 1993

with two sponsors, Prudential Plc. and ICICI Ltd. The Trustee Company formed is Prudential ICICI

Trust Ltd. and the AMC is Prudential ICICI Asset Management Company Limited incorporated on

22nd of June, 1993.

Sahara Mutual Fund

Sahara Mutual Fund was set up on July 18, 1996 with Sahara India Financial Corporation Ltd. as the

sponsor. Sahara Asset Management Company Private Limited incorporated on August 31, 1995 works

as the AMC of Sahara Mutual Fund. The paid-up capital of the AMC stands at Rs 25.8 crore.

State Bank of India Mutual Fund

State Bank of India Mutual Fund is the first Bank sponsored Mutual Fund to launch offshore fund, the

India Magnum Fund with a corpus of Rs. 225 cr. approximately. Today it is the largest Bank

sponsored Mutual Fund in India. They have already launched 35 Schemes out of which 15 have

already yielded handsome returns to investors. State Bank of India Mutual Fund has more than Rs.

5,500 Crores as AUM. Now it has an investor base of over 8 Lakhs spread over 18 schemes.

Tata Mutual Fund

Tata Mutual Fund (TMF) is a Trust under the Indian Trust Act, 1882. The sponsors for Tata Mutual

Fund are Tata Sons Ltd., and Tata Investment Corporation Ltd. The investment manager is Tata Asset

Management Limited and its Tata Trustee Company Pvt. Limited. Tata Asset Management Limited isone of the fastest growing in the country with more than Rs. 7,703 crores (as on April 30, 2005) of

AUM.

Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund

Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company (KMAMC) is a subsidiary of KMBL. It is presently

having more than 1,99,818 investors in its various schemes. KMAMC started its operations in

December 1998. Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund offers schemes catering to investors with varying risk -

return profiles. It was the first company to launch dedicated gilt scheme investing only in government

securities.


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Unit Trust of India Mutual Fund

UTI Asset Management Company Private Limited, established in Jan 14, 2003, manages the UTI

Mutual Fund with the support of UTI Trustee Company Private Limited. UTI Asset Management

Company presently manages a corpus of over Rs.20000 Crore. The sponsors of UTI Mutual Fund are

Bank of Baroda (BOB), Punjab National Bank (PNB), State Bank of India (SBI), and Life InsuranceCorporation of India (LIC). The schemes of UTI Mutual Fund are Liquid Funds, Income Funds, Asset

Management Funds, Index Funds, Equity Funds and Balance Funds.

Reliance Mutual Fund

Reliance Mutual Fund (RMF) was established as a trust under Indian Trusts Act, 1882. The sponsor of

RMF is Reliance Capital Limited and Reliance Capital Trustee Co. Limited is the Trustee. It was

registered on June 30, 1995 as Reliance Capital Mutual Fund which was changed on March 11, 2004.

Reliance Mutual Fund was formed for launching of various schemes under which units are issued to

the Public with a view to contribute to the capital market and to provide investors the opportunities to

make investments in diversified securities.

Standard Chartered Mutual Fund

Standard Chartered Mutual Fund was set up on March 13, 2000 sponsored by Standard CharteredBank. The Trustee is Standard Chartered Trustee Company Pvt. Ltd. Standard Chartered Asset

Management Company Pvt. Ltd. is the AMC which was incorporated with SEBI on December

20,1999.

Franklin Templeton India Mutual Fund

The group, Franklin Templeton Investments is a California (USA) based company with a global AUM

of US$ 409.2 bn. (as of April 30, 2005). It is one of the largest financial services groups in the world.

Investors can buy or sell the Mutual Fund through their financial advisor or through mail or through

their website. They have Open end Diversified Equity schemes, Open end Sector Equity schemes,

Open end Hybrid schemes, Open end Tax Saving schemes, Open end Income and Liquid schemes,

closed end Income schemes and Open end Fund of Funds schemes to offer.

Morgan Stanley Mutual Fund India

Morgan Stanley is a worldwide financial services company and it is leading in the market in securities,

investment management and credit services. Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MISM) was

established in the year 1975. It provides customized asset management services and products to

governments, corporations, pension funds and non-profit organisations. Its services are also extended

to high net worth individuals and retail investors. In India it is known as Morgan Stanley Investment

Management Private Limited (MSIM India) and its AMC is Morgan Stanley Mutual Fund (MSMF).

This is the first close end diversified equity scheme serving the needs of Indian retail investors

focusing on a long-term capital appreciation.

Escorts Mutual Fund

Escorts Mutual Fund was set up on April 15, 1996 with Escorts Finance Limited as its sponsor. TheTrustee Company is Escorts Investment Trust Limited. Its AMC was incorporated on December 1,

1995 with the name Escorts Asset Management Limited.

Alliance Capital Mutual Fund

Alliance Capital Mutual Fund was set up on December 30, 1994 with Alliance Capital Management

Corp. of Delaware (USA) as sponsor. The Trustee is ACAM Trust Company Pvt. Ltd. and AMC, the

Alliance Capital Asset Management India (Pvt) Ltd. with the corporate office in Mumbai.


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Benchmark Mutual Fund

Benchmark Mutual Fund was setup on June 12, 2001 with Niche Financial Services Pvt. Ltd. as the

sponsor and Benchmark Trustee Company Pvt. Ltd. as the Trustee Company. Incorporated on October

16, 2000 and headquartered in Mumbai, Benchmark Asset Management Company Pvt. Ltd. is the

AMC.Canbank Mutual Fund

Canbank Mutual Fund was setup on December 19, 1987 with Canara Bank acting as the sponsor.

Canbank Investment Management Services Ltd. incorporated on March 2, 1993 is the AMC. The

Corporate Office of the AMC is in Mumbai.

Chola Mutual Fund

Chola Mutual Fund, under the sponsorship of Cholamandalam Investment & Finance Company Ltd.,

was setup on January 3, 1997. Cholamandalam Trustee Co. Ltd. is the Trustee Company and AMC is

Cholamandalam AMC Limited.

LIC Mutual Fund

Life Insurance Corporation of India set up LIC Mutual Fund on 19th June 1989. It contributed Rs. 2

Crores towards the corpus of the Fund. LIC Mutual Fund was constituted as a Trust in accordancewith the provisions of the Indian Trust Act, 1882. . The Company started its business on 29th April

1994. The Trustees of LIC Mutual Fund have appointed Jeevan Bima Sahayog Asset Management

Company Ltd as the Investment Managers for LIC Mutual Fund.

GIC Mutual Fund

GIC Mutual Fund, sponsored by General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC), a Government of India

undertaking and the four Public Sector General Insurance Companies, viz. National Insurance Co. Ltd

(NIC), The New India Assurance Co. Ltd. (NIA), The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd (OIC) and United

India Insurance Co. Ltd. (UII) and is constituted as a Trust in accordance with the provisions of the

Indian Trusts Act, 1882.

TYPES OF MUTUAL FUND SCHEMES

By Structure

Open - Ended Schemes Close - Ended Schemes Interval SchemesBy Investment Objective

Growth Schemes Income Schemes Balanced Schemes Money Market SchemesOther Schemes

Tax Saving Schemes Special Schemes Index Schemes


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Sector Specific Schemes

Terms used in mutual funds

Net Asset Value (NAV)

Net Asset Value is the market value of the assets of the scheme minus its liabilities. The per unit NAV

is the net asset value of the scheme divided by the number of units outstanding on the Valuation Date.Sale Price

It is the price you pay when you invest in a scheme. It is also called Offer Price. It may include a sales

load.

Repurchase Price

This is the price at which a close-ended scheme repurchases its units and it may include a back-end

load. This is also called Bid Price.

Redemption Price

This is the price at which open-ended schemes repurchase their units and close-ended schemes redeem

their units on maturity. Such prices are NAV related.

Sales Load

This is a charge collected by a scheme when it sells the units. It is also called Front-end load.

Schemes that do not charge a load are called No Load schemes.

Repurchase or Back-end Load

It is a charge collected by a scheme when it buys back the units from the unit holders.

Organisation of a Mutual Fund

Absolute advantage: A country has an absolute advantage if its output per unit of input of all goods and

services produced is higher than that of another country.

Ad valorem tax :( in Latin: to the value added) - a tax based on the value (or assessed value) of property.

Aggregate demand is the sum of all demand in an economy. This can be computed by adding the

expenditure on consumer goods and services, investment, and not exports (total exports minus total

imports).

Aggregate supply is the total value of the goods and services produced in a country, plus the value ofimported goods less the value of exports.

Alternative minimum tax: An IRS mechanism created to ensure that high-income individuals, corporations,

trusts, and estates pay at least some minimum amount of tax, regardless of deductions, credits or

exemptions. It operates by adding certain tax-preference items back into adjusted gross income. While

it was once only important for a small number of high-income individuals who made extensive use of

tax shelters and deductions, more and more people are being affected by it. The AMT is triggered

when there are large numbers of personal exemptions on state and local taxes paid, large numbers of

miscellaneous itemized deductions or medical expenses, or by Incentive Stock Option (ISO) plans.


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Asset: Anything of monetary value that is owned by a person. Assets include real property, personal

property, and enforceable claims against others (including bank accounts, stocks, mutual funds, and so

on).

Average propensity to consume is the proportion of income the average family spends on goods and

services.Average propensity to save is the proportion of income the average family saves (does not spend on

consumption).

Average total cost is the sum of all the production costs divided by the number of units produced.

Balance of trade: The difference in value over a period of time between a country's imports and exports.

Barter system: System where there is exchange of goods without involving money.

Base year: In the construction of an index, the year from which the weights assigned to the different

components of the index is drawn. It is conventional to set the value of an index in its base year equal

to 100.

Bear: An investor with a pessimistic market outlook; an investor who expects prices to fall and so sells now

in order to buy later at a lower price.

Bid price: The highest price an investor is willing to pay for a stock.Bill of exchange: A written, dated, and signed three-party instrument containing an unconditional order by a

drawer that directs a drawee to pay a definite sum of money to a payee on demand or at a specified

future date. Also known as a draft. It is the most commonly used financial instrument in international

trade.

Birth rate: The number of births in a year per 1,000 population.

Bond: A certificate of debt (usually interest-bearing or discounted) that is issued by a government or

corporation in order to raise money; the issuer is required to pay a fixed sum annually until maturity

and then a fixed sum to repay the principal.

Boom: A state of economic prosperity

Break even: This is a term used to describe a point at which revenues equal costs (fixed and variable).

Bretton Woods: An international monetary system operating from 1946-1973. The value of the dollar was

fixed in terms of gold, and every other country held its currency at a fixed exchange rate against the

dollar; when trade deficits occurred, the central bank of the deficit country financed the deficit with its

reserves of international currencies. The Bretton Woods system collapsed in 1971 when the US

abandoned the gold standard.

Budget: A summary of intended expenditures along with proposals for how to meet them. A budget can

provide guidelines for managing future investments and expenses.

Budget deficit is the amount by which government spending exceeds government revenues during a

specified period of time usually a year.

Bull: An investor with an optimistic market outlook; an investor who expects prices to rise and so buys now

for resale later.c.i.f., abbrev: Cost, Insurance and Freight: Export term in which the price quoted by the exporter includes

the costs of ocean transportation to the port of destination and insurance coverage.

Call money: Price paid by an investor for a call option. There is no fixed rate for call money. It depends on

the type of stock, its performance prior to the purchase of the call option, and the period of the

contract. It is an interest bearing band deposits that can be withdrawn on 24 hours notice.

Capital: Wealth in the form of money or property owned by a person or business and human resources of

economic value. Capital is the contribution to productive activity made by investment is physical


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capital (machinery, factories, tools and equipments) and human capital (eg general education, health).

Capital is one of the three main factors of production other two are labour and natural resources.

Capital account; Part of a nation's balance of payments that includes purchases and sales of assets, such as

stocks, bonds, and land. A nation has a capital account surplus when receipts from asset sales exceed

payments for the country's purchases of foreign assets. The sum of the capital and current accounts isthe overall balance of payments

Capital budget: A plan of proposed capital outlays and the means of financing them for the current fiscal

period. It is usually a part of the current budget. If a Capital Program is in operation, it will be the first

year thereof. A Capital Program is sometimes referred to as a Capital Budget.

Capital gain tax: Tax paid on the gain realized upon the sale of an asset. It is a tax on profits from the sale

of capital assets, such as shares. A capital loss can be used to offset a capital gain, reducing any tax

you would otherwise have to pay.

Cartel: An organization of producers seeking to limit or eliminate competition among its members, most

often by agreeing to restrict output to keep prices higher than would occur under competitive

conditions. Cartels are inherently unstable because of the potential for producers to defect from the

agreement and capture larger markets by selling at lower prices.Census: Official gathering of information about the population in a particular area. Government departments

use the data collected in planning for the future in such areas as health, education, transport, and

housing..

Central bank: Major financial institution responsible for issuing currency, managing foreign reserves,

implementing monetary policy, and providing banking services to the government and commercial

banks.

Centrally planned economy: An economic system in which the production, pricing, and distribution of

goods and services are determined by the government rather than market forces. Also referred to as a

"non market economy." Former Soviet Union, China, and most other communist nations are examples

of centrally planed economy

Classical economics: The economics of Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Thomas Malthus, and later followers

such as John Stuart Mill. The theory concentrated on the functioning of a market economy, spelling

out a rudimentary explanation of consumer and producer behaviour in particular markets and

postulating that in the long term the economy would tend to operate at full employment because

increases in supply would create corresponding increases in demand.

Closed economy: An economy in which there are no foreign trade transactions or any other form of

economic contacts with the rest of the world.

Collateral security: Additional security a borrower supplies to obtain a loan.

Commercial Policy: encompassing instruments of trade protection employed by countries to foster

industrial promotion, export diversification, employment creation, and other desired development-

oriented strategies. They include tariffs, quotas, and subsidies.Comparative advantage: The ability to produce a good at a lower cost, relative to other goods, compared to

another country. With perfect competition and undistorted markets, countries tend to export goods in

which they have a Comparative Advantage and hence make gains from trading

Compound interest: Interest paid on the original principal and on interest accrued from time it became due.

Conditionality: The requirement imposed by the International Monetary Fund that a borrowing country

undertake fiscal, monetary, and international commercial reforms as a condition to receiving a loan for

balance of payments difficulties.


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Copyright: A legal right (usually of the author or composer or publisher of a work) to exclusive publication

production, sale, distribution of some work. What is protected by the copyright is the "expression," not

the idea. Notice that taking another's idea is plagiarism, so copyrights are not the equivalent of legal

prohibition of plagiarism.

Correlation coefficient: Denoted as "r", a measure of the linear relationship between two variables. Theabsolute value of "r" provides an indication of the strength of the relationship. The value of "r" varies

between positive 1 and negative 1, with -1 or 1 indicating a perfect linear relationship, and r = 0

indicating no relationship. The sign of the correlation coefficient indicates whether the slope of the

line is positive or negative when the two variables are plotted in a scatter plot.

Cost benefit analysis: A technique that assesses projects through a comparison between their costs and

benefits, including social costs and benefits for an entire region or country. Depending on the project

objectives and its the expected outputs, three types of CBA are generally recognized: financial;

economic; and social. Generally cost-benefit analyses are comparative, i.e. they are used to compare

alternative proposals. Cost-benefit analysis compares the costs and benefits of the situation with and

without the project; the costs and benefits are considered over the life of the project.

Countervailing duties: duties (tariffs) that are imposed by a country to counteract subsidies provided to aforeign producer Current account: Part of a nation's balance of payments which includes the value of

all goods and services imported and exported, as well as the payment and receipt of dividends and

interest. A nation has a current account surplus if exports exceed imports plus net transfers to

foreigners. The sum of the current and capital accounts is the overall balance of payments.

Cross elasticity of demand: The change in the quantity demanded of one product or service impacting the

change in demand for another product or service. E.g. percentage change in the quantity demanded of

a good divided by the percentage change in the price of another good (a substitute or complement).

Cross elasticity of demand: The change in the quantity demanded of one product or service impacting the

change in demand for another product or service. E.g. percentage change in the quantity demanded of

a good divided by the percentage change in the price of another good (a substitute or complement).

Crowding out: The possible tendency for government spending on goods and services to put upward

pressure on interest rates, thereby discouraging private investment spending.

Currency appreciation: An increase in the value of one currency relative to another currency. Appreciation

occurs when, because of a change in exchange rates; a unit of one currency buys more units of another

currency. Opposite is the case with currency depreciation.

Currency board: Form of central bank that issues domestic currency for foreign exchange at fixed rates.

Currency substitution: The use of foreign currency (e.g., U.S. dollars) as a medium of exchange in place of

or along with the local currency (e.g., Rupees).

Customs duty: Duty levied on the imports of certain goods. Includes excise equivalents Unlike tariffs

customs duties are used mainly as a means to raise revenue for the government rather than protecting

domestic producers from foreign competition.Death rate: numbers of people dying per thousand population.

Deflation: a reduction in the level of national income and output, usually accompanied by a fall in the

general price level.

Developed country is an economically advanced country whose economy is characterized by a large

industrial and service sector and high levels of income per head.

Developing country, less developed country, underdeveloped country or third world country: a country

characterized by low levels of GDP and per capita income; typically dominated by agriculture and

mineral products and majority of the population lives near subsistence levels.


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Dumping occurs when goods are exported at a price less than their normal value, generally meaning they are

exported for less than they are sold in the domestic market or third country markets, or at less than

production cost.

Direct investment: Foreign capital inflow in the form of investment by foreign-based companies into

domestic based companies. Portfolio investment is foreign capital inflow by foreign investors intoshares and financial securities. It is the ownership and management of production and/or marketing

facilities in a foreign country.

Direct tax: A tax that you pay directly, as opposed to indirect taxes, such as tariffs and business taxes. The

income tax is a direct tax, as are property taxes. See also Indirect Tax.

Double taxation: Corporate earnings taxed at both the corporate level and again as a stockholder dividend

Economic growth: Quantitative measure of the change in size/volume of economic activity, usually

calculated in terms of gross national product (GNP) or gross domestic product(GDP).

Duopoly: A market structure in which two producers of a commodity compete with each other.

Econometrics: The application of statistical and mathematical methods in the field of economics to test and

quantify economic theories and the solutions to economic problems.

Economic development: The process of improving the quality of human life through increasing per capitaincome, reducing poverty, and enhancing individual economic opportunities. It is also sometimes

defined to include better education, improved health and nutrition, conservation of natural resources, a

cleaner environment, and a richer cultural life.

Economic growth: An increase in the nation's capacity to produce goods and services.

Economic infrastructure: The underlying amount of physical and financial capital embodied in roads,

railways, waterways, airways, and other forms of transportation and communication plus water

supplies, financial institutions, electricity, and public services such as health and education. The level

of infrastructural development in a country is a crucial factor determining the pace and diversity of

economic development.

Economic integration: The merging to various degrees of the economies and economic policies of two or

more countries in a given region. See also common market, customs union, free-trade area, trade

creation, and trade diversion.

Economic policy: A statement of objectives and the methods of achieving these objectives (policy

instruments) by government, political party, business concern, etc. Some examples of government

economic objectives are maintaining full employment, achieving a high rate of economic growth,

reducing income inequalities and regional development inequalities, and maintaining price stability.

Policy instruments include fiscal policy, monetary and financial policy, and legislative controls (e.g.,

price and wage control, rent control).

Elasticity of demand: The degree to which consumer demand for a product or service responds to a change

in price, wage or other independent variable. When there is no perceptible response, demand is said to

be inelastic.Excess capacity: Volume or capacity over and above that which is needed to meet peak planned or expected

demand.

Excess demand: the situation in which the quantity demanded at a given price exceeds the quantity supplied.

Opposite: excess supply

Exchange control: A governmental policy designed to restrict the outflow of domestic currency and prevent

a worsened balance of payments position by controlling the amount of foreign exchange that can be

obtained or held by domestic citizens. Often results from overvalued exchange rates

Exchange rate: The price of one currency stated in terms of another currency.


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Export incentives: Public subsidies, tax rebates, and other kinds of financial and nonfinancial measures

designed to promote a greater level of economic activity in export industries.

Exports: The value of all goods and nonfactor services sold to the rest of the world; they include

merchandise, freight, insurance, travel, and other nonfactor services. The value of factor services (such

as investment receipts and workers' remittances from abroad) is excluded from this measure. See alsomerchandise exports and imports.

Exchange control A governmental policy designed to restrict the outflow of domestic currency and prevent

a worsened balance of payments position by controlling the amount of foreign exchange that can be

obtained or held by domestic citizens. Often results from overvalued exchange rates.

Externalities: A cost or benefit not accounted for in the price of goods or services. Often "externality" refers

to the cost of pollution and other environmental impacts.

Fiscal deficit is the gap between the government's total spending and the sum of its revenue receipts and

non-debt capital receipts. It represents the total amount of borrowed funds required by the government

to completely meet its expenditure

Fiscal policy is the use of government expenditure and taxation to try to influence the level of economic

activity. An expansionary (or reflationary) fiscal policy could mean: cutting levels of direct or indirecttax increasing government expenditure The effect of these policies would be to encourage more

spending and boost the economy. A contractionary (or deflationary) fiscal policy could be: increasing

taxation - either direct or indirect cutting government expenditure These policies would reduce the

level of demand in the economy and help to reduce inflation

Fixed costs: A cost incurred in the general operations of the business that is not directly attributable to the

costs of producing goods and services. These "Fixed" or "Indirect" costs of doing business will be

incurred whether or not any sales are made during the period, thus the designation "Fixed", as opposed

to "Variable".

Fixed exchange rate: The exchange value of a national currency fixed in relation to another (usually the

U.S. dollar), not free to fluctuate on the international money market.

Foreign aid: The international transfer of public funds in the form of loans or grants either directly from one

government to another (bilateral assistance) or indirectly through the vehicle of a multilateral

assistance agency like the World Bank. See also tied aid, private foreign investment, and

nongovernmental organizations.

Foreign direct investment (FDI): Overseas investments by private multinational corporations.

Foreign exchange reserves: The stock of liquid assets denominated in foreign currencies held by a

government's monetary authorities (typically, the finance ministry or central bank). Reserves enable

the monetary authorities to intervene in foreign exchange markets to affect the exchange value of their

domestic currency in the market. Reserves are invested in low-risk and liquid assets, often in foreign

government securities.

Free trade: Trade in which goods can be imported and exported without any barriers in the forms of tariffs,quotas, or other restrictions. Free trade has often been described as an engine of growth because it

encourages countries to specialize in activities in which they have comparative advantages, thereby

increasing their respective production efficiencies and hence their total output of goods and services.

Free-trade area A form of economic integration in which there exists free internal trade among member

countries but each member is free to levy different external tariffs against non-member nations.

Free-market exchange rate: Rate determined solely by international supply and demand for domestic

currency expressed in terms of, say, U.S. dollars.


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Fringe benefit: A benefit in addition to salary offered to employees such as use of company's car, house,

lunch coupons, health care subscriptions etc.

Gains from trade: The addition to output and consumption resulting from specialization in production and

free trade with other economic units including persons, regions, or countries.

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) An international body set up in 1947 to probe into theways and means of reducing tariffs on internationally traded goods and services. Between 1947 and

1962, GATT held seven conferences but met with only moderate success. Its major success was

achieved in 1967 during the so-called Kennedy Round of talks when tariffs on primary commodities

were drastically slashed and then in 1994 with the signing of the Uruguay Round agreement. Replaced

in 1995 by World Trade Organization (WTO).

Global warming Theory that world climate is slowly warming as a result of both MDC and LDC industrial

and agricultural activities.

Gross domestic product: (GDP) Gross Domestic Product: The total of goods and services produced by a

nation over a given period, usually 1 year. Gross Domestic Product measures the total output from all

the resources located in a country, wherever the owners of the resources live.

Gross national product (GNP) is the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in agiven year, plus income earned by its citizens abroad, minus income earned by foreigners from

domestic production. The Fact book, following current practice, uses GDP rather than GNP to

measure national production. However, the user must realize that in certain countries net remittances

from citizens working abroad may be important to national well being. GNP equals GDP plus net

property income from abroad. Globalisation: The process whereby trade is now being conducted on

ever widening geographical boundaries. Countries now trade across continents and companies also

trade all over the world.

Human capital Productive investments are embodied in human persons. These include skills, abilities,

ideals, and health resulting from expenditures on education, on-the-job training programs, and medical

care

Imperfect competition A market situation or structure in which producers have some degree of control over

the price of their product. Examples include monopoly and oligopoly. See also perfect competition.

Imperfect market A market where the theoretical assumptions of perfect competition are violated by the

existence of, for example, a small number of buyers and sellers, barriers to entry, nonhomogeneity of

products, and incomplete information. The three imperfect markets commonly analyzed in economic

theory are monopoly, oligopoly, and monopolistic competition.

Import substitution A deliberate effort to replace major consumer imports by promoting the emergence and

expansion of domestic industries such as textiles, shoes, and household appliances. Import substitution

requires the imposition of protective tariffs and quotas to get the new industry started.

Income inequality The existence of disproportionate distribution of total national income among households

whereby the share going to rich persons in a country is far greater than that going to poorer persons (asituation common to most LDCs). This is largely due to differences in the amount of income derived

from ownership of property and to a lesser extent the result of differences in earned income. Inequality

of personal incomes can be reduced by progressive income taxes and wealth taxes.

Index of industrial production: A quantity index that is designed to measure changes in the physical

volume or production levels of industrial goods over time.

Inflation is the percentage increase in the prices of goods and services.

Indirect tax: A tax you do not pay directly, but which is passed on to you by an increase in your expenses.

For instance, a company might have to pay a fuel tax. The company pays the tax but can increase the


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cost of its products so consumers are actually paying the tax indirectly by paying more for the

merchandise.

Interdependence Interrelationship between economic and noneconomic variables. Also, in international

affairs, the situation in which one nation's welfare depends to varying degrees on the decisions and

policies of another nation, and vice versa. See also dependence.International commodity agreement Formal agreement by sellers of a common internationally traded

commodity (coffee, sugar) to coordinate supply to maintain price stability.

International Labor Organization (ILO) One of the functional organizations of the United Nations, based

in Geneva, Switzerland, whose central task is to look into problems of world labor supply, its training,

utilization, domestic and international distribution, etc. Its aim in this endeavor is to increase world

output through maximum utilization of available human resources and thus improve levels of living.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) An autonomous international financial institution that originated in

the Bretton Woods Conference of 1944. Its main purpose is to regulate the international monetary

exchange system, which also stems from that conference but has since been modified. In particular,

one of the central tasks of the IMF is to control fluctuations in exchange rates of world currencies in a

bid to alleviate severe balance of payments problems.International poverty line An arbitrary international real income measure, usually expressed in constant

dollars (e.g., $270), used as a basis for estimating the proportion of the world's population that exists at

bare levels of subsistence.

Land reform A deliberate attempt to reorganize and transform existing agrarian systems with the intention

of improving the distribution of agricultural incomes and thus fostering rural development. Among its

many forms, land reform may entail provision of secured tenure rights to the individual farmer,

transfer of land ownership away from small classes of powerful landowners to tenants who actually till

the land, appropriation of land estates for establishing small new settlement farms, or instituting land

improvements and irrigation schemes.

Macroeconomic stabilization Policies designed to eliminate macroeconomic instability.

Macroeconomics The branch of economics that considers the relationships among broad economic

aggregates such as national income, total volumes of saving, investment, consumption expenditure,

employment, and money supply. It is also concerned with determinants of the magnitudes of these

aggregates and their rates of change over time.

Market economy A free private-enterprise economy governed by consumer sovereignty, a price system, and

the forces of supply and demand.

Market failure A phenomenon that results from the existence of market imperfections (e.g., monopoly

power, lack of factor mobility, significant externalities, lack of knowledge) that weaken the

functioning of a free-market economy--it fails to realize its theoretical beneficial results. Market

failure often provides the justification for government interference with the working of the free

market.Market-friendly approach: World Bank notion that successful development policy requires governments to

create an environment in which markets can operate efficiently and to intervene selectively in the

economy in areas where the market is inefficient (e.g., social and economic infrastructure, investment

coordination, economic "safety net").

Market mechanism: The system whereby prices of commodities or services freely rise or fall when the

buyer's demand for them rises or falls or the seller's supply of them decreases or increases.

Market prices: Prices established by demand and supply in a free-market economy.


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Merchandise exports and imports: All international changes in ownership of merchandise passing across

the customs borders of the trading countries. Exports are valued f.o.b. (free on board). Imports are

valued c.i.f. (cost, insurance, and freight).

Merchandise trade balance: Balance on commodity exports and imports.

Microeconomics: The branch of economics concerned with individual decision units--firms and households--and the way in which their decisions interact to determine relative prices of goods and factors of

production and how much of these will be bought and sold. The market is the central concept in

microeconomics.

Middle-income countries (MICs): LDCs with per capita income above $785 and below $9,655 in 1997

according to World Bank measures.

Mixed economic systems: Economic systems that are a mixture of both capitalist and socialist economies.

Most developing countries have mixed systems. Their essential feature is the coexistence of

substantial private and public activity within a single economy.

Monetary policy: The regulation of the money supply and interest rates by a central bank in order to control

inflation and stabilize currency. If the economy is heating up, the central bank (such as RBI in India)

can withdraw money from the banking system, raise the reserve requirement or raise the discount rateto make it cool down. If growth is slowing, it can reverse the process - increase the money supply,

lower the reserve requirement and decrease the discount rate. The monetary policy influences interest

rates and money supply.

Money supply: the total stock of money in the economy; currency held by the public plus money in

accounts in banks. It consists primarily currency in circulation and deposits in savings and checking

accounts. Too much money in relation to the output of goods tends to push interest rates down and

push inflation up; too little money tends to push rates up and prices down, causing unemployment and

idle plant capacity. The central bank manages the money supply by raising and lowering the reserves

banks are required to hold and the discount rate at which they can borrow money from the central

bank. The central bank also trades government securities (called repurchase agreements) to take

money out of the system or put it in. There are various measures of money supply, including M1, M2,

M3 and L; these are referred to as monetary aggregates.

Monopoly A market situation in which a product that does not have close substitutes is being produced and

sold by a single seller.

Multi-Fiber Arrangement (MFA) A set of nontariff bilateral quotas established by developed countries on

imports of cotton, wool, and synthetic textiles and clothing from individual LDCs

Multinational corporation (MNC) An international or transnational corporation with headquarters in one

country but branch offices in a wide range of both developed and developing countries. Examples

include General Motors, Coca-Cola, Firestone, Philips, Volkswagen, British Petroleum, Exxon, and

ITT. Firms become multinational corporations when they perceive advantages to establishing

production and other activities in foreign locations. Firms globalize their activities both to supply theirhome-country market more cheaply and to serve foreign markets more directly. Keeping foreign

activities within the corporate structure lets firms avoid the costs inherent in arm's-length dealings with

separate entities while utilizing their own firm-specific knowledge such as advanced production

techniques.

National debt: Treasury bills, notes, bonds, and other debt obligations that constitute the debt owed by the

federal government. It represents the accumulation of each year's budget deficit Public debt:

Borrowing by the Government of India internally as well as externally. The total of the nation's debts:


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debts of local and state and national governments is an indicator of how much public spending is

financed by borrowing instead of taxation

Newly industrializing countries (NICs) A small group of countries at a relatively advanced level of

economic development with a substantial and dynamic industrial sector and with close links to the

international trade, finance, and investment system (Argentina, Brazil, Greece, Mexico, Portugal,Singapore, South Korea, Spain, and Taiwan).

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) Privately owned and operated organizations involved in

providing financial and technical assistance to LDCs. See foreign aid.

Nontariff trade barrier: A barrier to free trade that takes a form other than a tariff, such as quotas or

sanitary requirements for imported meats and dairy products.

Official development assistance (ODA) Net disbursements of loans or grants made on concessional terms

by official agencies of member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and

Development (OECD).

Official exchange rate: Rate at which the central bank will buy and sell the domestic currency in terms of a

foreign currency such as the U.S. dollar.

Open economy An economy that encourages foreign trade and has extensive financial and nonfinancialcontacts with the rest of the world in areas such as education, culture, and technology. See also closed

economy.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD): An organization of 20 countries

from the Western world including all of those in Europe and North America. Its major objective is to

assist the economic growth of its member nations by promoting cooperation and technical analysis of

national and international economic trends.

Overvalued exchange rate An official exchange rate set at a level higher than its real or shadow value--for

example, 7 Kenyan shillings per dollar instead of, say, 10 shillings per dollar. Overvalued rates

cheapen the real cost of imports while raising the real cost of exports. They often lead to a need for

exchange control.

Perfect competition A market situation characterized by the existence of very many buyers and sellers of

homogeneous goods or services with perfect knowledge and free entry so that no single buyer or seller

can influence the price of the good or service.

Performance budget is a budget format that relates the input of resources and the output of services for each

organizational unit individually. Sometimes used synonymously with program budget. It is a budget

wherein expenditures are based primarily upon measurable performance of activities.

Political economy The attempt to merge economic analysis with practical politics--to view economic

activity in its political context. Much of classical economics was political economy, and today political

economy is increasingly being recognized as necessary for any realistic examination of development

problems.

Portfolio investment Financial investments by private individuals, corporations, pension funds, and mutualfunds in stocks, bonds, certificates of deposit, and notes issued by private companies and the public

agencies of LDCs. See also private foreign investment.

Poverty gap: The sum of the difference between the poverty line and actual income levels of all people

living below that line.

Poverty line: A level of income below, which people are deemed poor. A global poverty line of $1 per

person per day was suggested in 1990 (World Bank 1990). This line facilitates comparison of how

many poor people there are in different countries. But, it is only a crude estimate because the line does


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not recognize differences in the buying power of money in different countries, and, more significantly,

because it does not recognize other aspects of poverty than the material, or income poverty.

Price: The monetary or real value of a resource, commodity, or service. The role of prices in a market

economy is to ration or allocate resources in accordance with supply and demand; relative prices

should reflect the relative scarcity of different resources, goods, or services.Price elasticity of demand: The responsiveness of the quantity of a commodity demanded to a change in its

price, expressed as the percentage change in quantity demanded divided by the percentage change in

price.

Price elasticity of supply: The responsiveness of the quantity of a commodity supplied to a change in its

price, expressed as the percentage change in quantity supplied divided by the percentage change in

price.

Quota: A physical limitation on the quantity of any item that can be imported into a country, such as so

many automobiles per year. Also a method for allocating limited school places by noncompetitive

means--for example, by income or ethnicity.

Repo rate: This is one of the credit management tools used by the Reserve Bank to regulate liquidity in

South Africa (customer spending). The bank borrows money from the Reserve Bank to cover itsshortfall. The Reserve Bank only makes a certain amount of money available and this determines the

repo rate. If the bank requires more money than what is available, this will increase the repo rate - and

vice versa.

Revenue expenditure: This is expenditure on recurring items, including the running of services and

financing capital spending that is paid for by borrowing. This is meant for normal running of

governments' maintenance expenditures, interest payments, subsidies and transfers etc. It is current

expenditure which does not result in the creation of assets. Grants given to State governments or other

parties are also treated as revenue expenditure even if some of the grants may be meant for creating

assets. Subsidy : Financial assistance (often from the government) to a specific group of producers or

consumers.

Revenue receipts: Additions to assets that do not incur an obligation that must be met at some future date

and do not represent exchanges of property for money. Assets must be available for expenditures.

These include proceeds of taxes and duties levied by the government, interest and dividend on

investments made by the government, fees and other receipts for services rendered by the government.

Stabilization policies: A coordinated set of mostly restrictive fiscal and monetary policies aimed at reducing

inflation, cutting budget deficits, and improving the balance of payments. See conditionality and

International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Subsidy: A payment by the government to producers or distributors in an industry to prevent the decline of

that industry (e

General Awareness Handout

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