Economics, Finance & Business

a retirement savings plan that is funded by employee contributions and (often) matching contributions from the employer; contributions are made from your salary before taxes and the funds grow tax-free until they are withdrawn, at which point they can be converted into an IRA; funds can be transferred if you change employers and you can (to some extent) manage the investments yourself

Scottish economist who advocated private enterprise and free trade (1723-1790)

the largest federation of North American labor unions

a security issued by United States government agencies or the Farm Credit System

a large-scale farming enterprise

economic independence as a national policy

a system of recording all of a country's economic transactions with the rest of the world over a period of one year

the difference in value over a period of time of a country's imports and exports of merchandise

a record of the financial situation of an institution on a particular date by listing its assets and the claims against those assets

the concerted action of depositors who try to withdraw their money from a bank because they think it will fail

a holder of bonds issued by a government or corporation

bonds sold by a corporation or government agency at a particular time and identifiable by date of maturity

an evaluation by a rating company of the probability that a particular bond issue will default

someone who receives something on the promise to return it or its equivalent

attain a level at which there is neither gain nor loss, as in business, gambling, or a competitive sport

the business of a broker

a speculative scheme that depends on unstable factors that the planner cannot control

a commercial or industrial organization

recurring fluctuations in economic activity consisting of recession and recovery and growth and decline

recurring fluctuations in economic activity consisting of recession and recovery and growth and decline

data processing in accounting or business management

insurance that provides protection for the loss of profits and continuing fixed expenses resulting from a break in commercial activities due to the occurrence of a peril

a market in which more people want to sell than want to buy

acquisition of a company by purchasing a controlling percentage of its stock

the option to buy a stock at a price before a given date

the amount by which the selling price of an asset exceeds the purchase price; the gain is realized when the asset is sold

a tax on capital gains

money in the form of bills or coins

the corporate executive responsible for the operations of the firm; reports to a board of directors; may appoint other managers (including a president)

all other things being equal

the corporate executive having financial authority to make appropriations and authorize expenditures for a firm

a bank account against which the depositor can draw checks that are payable on demand

someone who maintains and audits business accounts

relating to or part of a binding legal agreement

be priced at

an analysis of the cost effectiveness of different alternatives in order to see whether the benefits outweigh the costs

average cost of basic necessities of life

an index of the cost of all goods and services to a typical consumer

inflation caused by an increase in the costs of production

a card (usually plastic) that assures a seller that the person using it has a satisfactory credit rating and that the issuer will see to it that the seller receives payment for the merchandise delivered

a cooperative depository financial institution whose members can obtain loans from their combined savings

the trace of a point whose direction of motion changes

English economist who argued that the laws of supply and demand should operate in a free market (1772-1823)

a card (usually plastic) that enables the holder to withdraw money or to have the cost of purchases charged directly to the holder's bank account

inflation caused by an increase in demand or in the supply of money

a reduction of prices intended to improve the balance of payments

the basic monetary unit in many countries

a company that operates its business primarily on the internet using a URL that ends in `.com'

an indicator of stock market prices

the excess of revenues over outlays in a given period of time (including depreciation and other non-cash expenses)

the application of mathematics and statistics to the study of economic and financial data

a program under which employees regularly accumulate shares and may ultimately assume control of the company

a mutual fund that is traded on a stock exchange

the basic monetary unit of most members of the European Union (introduced in 1999); in 2002 twelve European nations (Germany, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Greece, Austria, Finland) adopted the euro as their basic unit of money and abandoned their traditional currencies

the charge for exchanging currency of one country for currency of another

trade that is conducted legally

the central bank of the United States

owners or operators of one or more establishments

a government policy for dealing with the budget

the system by which one currency is exchanged for another

the basic monetary unit in many countries

(economics) a theory of competition stated in terms of gains and losses among opposing players

the measure of an economy adopted by the United States in 1991; the total market values of goods and services produced by workers and capital within a nation's borders during a given period (usually 1 year)

total value of goods and services produced in a country

any merchandise, commodity, or article of commerce

education provided by a college or university

cause to stop

a corporation's first offer to sell stock to the public

a retirement plan that allows you to contribute a limited yearly sum toward your retirement; taxes on the interest earned in the account are deferred

the bureau of the Treasury Department responsible for tax collections

English philosopher and jurist; founder of utilitarianism

English empiricist philosopher who believed that all knowledge is derived from sensory experience (1632-1704)

English economist who advocated the use of government monetary and fiscal policy to maintain full employment without inflation (1883-1946)

English philosopher and economist remembered for his interpretations of empiricism and utilitarianism (1806-1873)

a venture by a partnership or conglomerate designed to share risk or expertise

a bond with a credit rating of BB or lower

founder of modern communism

the economic theories of John Maynard Keynes who advocated government monetary and fiscal programs intended to stimulate business activity and increase employment

the basic unit of money in Sweden

the market in which workers compete for jobs and employers compete for workers

a law affirming that to continue after a certain level of performance has been reached will result in a decline in effectiveness

a buyout using borrowed money

the branch of economics that studies the overall working of a national economy

a master's degree in business

the study of how consumers and individual firms acquire and use resources

United States economist noted as a proponent of monetarism and for his opposition to government intervention in the economy (born in 1912)

an economic system that combines private and state enterprises

an economic theory holding that variations in unemployment and the rate of inflation are usually caused by changes in the supply of money

a reserve of money set aside for some purpose

the total stock of money in the economy

a bond issued by a state or local government

the pooled money that is invested in assets

a computerized data system to provide brokers with price quotations for securities traded over the counter

a promise to pay a specified amount on demand or at a certain time

a stock exchange in New York

a stock exchange where securities transactions are made via telephone and computer rather than on the floor of an exchange

material used to make packages

the value of a security that is set by the company issuing it; unrelated to market value

the final payment of a debt

(stock market) the price of a stock divided by its earnings

the basic unit of money in Mexico; equal to 100 centavos

an act of formulating a program for a course of action

the branch of social science that deals with the production and distribution and consumption of goods and services and their management

the basic unit of money in Great Britain and Northern Ireland; equal to 100 pence

movable property (as distinguished from real estate)

any tax in which the rate increases as the amount subject to taxation increases

a capital tax on property imposed by municipalities

an unincorporated business owned by a single person who is responsible for its liabilities and entitled to its profits

governmental provision of economic assistance to persons in need

property owned by a government

a commercial document used to request someone to supply something in return for payment and providing specifications and quantities

the option to sell a given stock at a given price and date

a fraudulent scheme in which people are recruited to make payments to the person who recruited them while expecting to receive payments from the persons they recruit; when the number of new recruits fails to sustain the hierarchical payment structure the scheme collapses with most of the participants losing the money they put in

maintenance of standards of quality of manufactured goods

being or occurring in fact or actuality

property consisting of houses and land

the cancellation of a contract

the basic unit of money in Russia

a substantial increase over a relatively short period of time

the basic unit of money in India; equal to 100 paise

a tax based on the cost of the item purchased and collected directly from the buyer

a bank account that accumulates interest

a thrift institution that is required by law to make a certain percentage of its loans as home mortgages

an independent federal agency that oversees the exchange of securities to protect investors

a market in which more people want to buy than want to sell

a sudden jarring impact

termination of operations

social welfare program in the U.S.

involving social as well as economic factors

a broadly based stock market index

an agent in the buying and selling of stocks and bonds

a corporation's purchase of its own outstanding stock

a certificate documenting the shareholder's ownership in the corporation

a dividend paid in stock rather than in cash

an exchange where security trading is conducted by professional stockbrokers

an increase in the number of outstanding shares of a corporation without changing the shareholders' equity

the letters used to identify listed companies on the securities exchanges where they are traded

a change by sale or merger in the controlling interest of a corporation

an official who evaluates property for the purpose of taxing it

a category of taxpayers based on the amount of their income

a category of taxpayers based on the amount of their income

a reduction in the gross amount on which a tax is calculated

(of goods or funds) not taxed

the amount of tax owed

lien of which a tax collector may avail himself in default of taxes (analogous to a judgment lien)

someone who collects taxes for the government

rate used to calculate tax liability

document giving the tax collector information about the taxpayer's tax liability

a way of organizing business to reduce the taxes it must pay on current earnings

a reduction in the gross amount on which a tax is calculated

underdeveloped or developing countries around the world collectively

an English economist who argued that increases in population would outgrow increases in the means of subsistence (1766-1834)

United States economist who wrote about conspicuous consumption (1857-1929)

an excess of imports over exports

a short-term obligation that is not interest-bearing

a debt instrument with maturities of 10 years or longer

an agent who sells insurance

a tax levied on the difference between a commodity's price before taxes and its cost of production

wealth available for investment in new or speculative enterprises

Italian sociologist and economist whose theories influenced the development of fascism in Italy (1848-1923)