Copy of `Oesterreichische Nationalbank - Dictionary`

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Oesterreichische Nationalbank - Dictionary Category: Economy and Finance Date & country: 04/10/2008, AU Words: 3913

financing
means by which a government provides financial resources to cover a budget deficit or allocated financial resources arising from a budget surplus....

financing account
A nonbudgetary account associated with a credit program that holds balances, receives credit subsidy payments from the program account, and includes all cash flows resulting from obligations or commitments made under the program since October 1, 1991. The transactions reflected in the financing account are considered a means of financing. See credi...

fine troy ounces
Fine ounce: The description of a troy ounce of gold that is assumed to be 995 pure, unless otherwise specified....

fine weight
The actual weight of the pure gold or silver contained in a coin, ingot, bar or other item with a precious metal content, determined by multiplying the gross weight by the fineness, as opposed to the item`s total weight, which includes the weight of the alloying component....

fine weight
The pure weight of precious metal in a coin. The fine weight of the four-ducat, for instance, is 13.7696436 g, while the total weight is 13.9635840 g. The difference is constituted by the weight of the copper part....

fineness
The precious metal proportion of a coin. The Vienna Philharmonic gold coin, for instance has a gold standard fineness of 999.9/1000, thus is practically pure gold....

fine-tuning operation
A non-regular open market operation executed by the central bankmainly in order to deal with unexpected liquidity fluctuations in the market....

firewall
a hardware- and/or software-based system that is used as an interface between the internet and a computer system to monitor and filter incoming and outgoing communications....

first call date
First Call Date - Earliest date a security may be redeemed by its issuer....

first difference
change, or first difference: The difference in values of two adjacent observations. With time-series data, it is the subsequent value less the prior value....

first-price auction
An auction in which the bidder who submitted the highest bid is awarded the object being sold and pays a price equal to the amount bid. Alternately, in a procurement auction, the winner is the bidder who submits the lowest bid, and is paid an amount equal to his or her bid. In practice, first-price auctions are either sealed-bid, in which bidders s...

first-price auction
Whatever the the specifics of the auction, the winner is the individual submitting the highest bid. The winner pays the submitted bid....

fiscal agent
As fiscal agent for corporations and municipalities, an institution makes interest payments on coupon bonds (often referred to as bearer bonds) as the coupons are presented; redeems maturing bonds; or prepares and mails interest checks for registered bonds, or dividend checks for stock issues. A fiscal agent may also be called a dividend disbursing...

fiscal burden
Fiscal burden. The amount of compulsory transfers imposed by units of the general government sector on the rest of the economy. It can be approximated by the sum of tax revenue and compulsory social security contributions. If a supranational organization also imposes compulsory transfers, they may need to be added. Fines, penalties, and forfeits ar...

fiscal consolidation
Refers to corrective measures/actions taken by the government to reduce budget deficits and improve its ratio of public debt to gross domestic product....

fiscal contraction
Fiscal contraction, or fiscal consolidation, refers to fiscal policy that reduces the budget deficit / increases the budget surplus....

fiscal contraction
The government can also increase taxes or lower government spending in order to conduct a fiscal contraction. What this will do is lower real output (less government spending means less disposable income of the consumer) Because more of the consumer`s wages would be going to taxes, demand as well as output will decrease....

fiscal expansion
An increase in government spending (or a tax cut) shifts the IS-curve to the right. With a fixed exchange rate this causes income and the interest rate both to rise. The rise in interest rate attracts a capital inflow that, with relatively mobile capital, is sufficient to create a BOP surplus. With a flexible exchange rate this is an excess demand ...

fiscal policy
A government`s program with respect to (1) the purchase of goods and services and spending on transfer payments, and (2) the amount and type of tax rates. Fiscal policy and monetary policy are the major tools used by governments to regulate the macroeconomy....

fiscal policy
the course of action adopted by the government, concerning taxes and the government`s spending (`fiscal` is concerned with the Treasury of the country and its finances)....

fiscal policy
The government`s choice of tax and spending programs, which influences the amount and maturity of government debt as well as the level, composition, and distribution of national output and income. An `easy` fiscal policy stimulates the short-term growth of output and income, whereas a `tight` fiscal policy restrains their growth. Movements in the s...

fiscal stance
The fiscal stance measures how deflationary or reflationary the government`s budget is. For example the government might decide to raise the burden of taxation and end up with a large budget surplus. If after adjusting for the effects of the economic cycle, the budget surplus is still large, we say that the government has tightened the fiscal stanc...

fiscal sustainability
To make a long story short (see Chalk and Hemming, 2000), two definitions of fiscal sustainability are most often used: - `strong sustainability” requires the debt to GDP ratio to be constant. The indicator associated with this definition of sustainability is the permanent primary surplus necessary to stabilize the debt ratio; it is both easy to ...

Fischer hypothesis
The proposition that in the medium run an increase in inflation is reflected in an identical increase in the nominal interest, leaving the real interest rate unchanged....

fish sticks
But putting aside our snobby preference for fresh fish, realizing that frozen foods are a lifesaver for many families (used, we hope, in moderation), and recognizing that the dog might have eaten the package just as you were about to read the instructions, the general rule of thumb for fish sticks is 400°F (205°C) in a shallow pan for 16 minutes, t...

fit currency
Fit means a note that is suitable for continued circulation and is sufficiently clean to allow its genuiness and denomination to be readily ascertained....

fit-for-purpose translation
Fit-for-purpose translation is a conscious attempt to use translation and revision resources intelligently. ... What are fit-for-purpose translation`s theoretical credentials? The functionalist, pragmatics-based tradition that contrasts with linguistic formalism. Specific theory base = Skopos theory and relevance theory...

fixed assets
For the purpose of the reporting scheme, this consists of non-financial assets, tangible or intangible, which are intended to be used repeatedly for more than 1 year by reporting MFIs. They include land and buildings occupied by the MFIs, as well as equipment, software and other infrastructure....

fixed costs
Expenses that must be paid no matter how many goods or services are offered for sale are called fixed costs....

fixed exchange rate system
Exchange rates between currencies that are set at predetermined levels and don`t move in response to changes in supply and demand....

fixed for floating rate swap
An interest rate swap in which the fixed rate payments are traded for a floating rate....

fixed income fund
A mutual fund that seeks current income by investing in fixed-income securities such as bonds....

fixed rate tender
A tender procedure where the interest rate is specified in advance by the central bank and participating counterparties bid the amount of money they want to transact at the fixed interest rate....

fixed-effect model
This is a statistical model that stipulates that the units under analysis (people in a trial or study in a meta-analysis) are the ones of interest, and thus constitute the entire population of units. Only within-study variation is taken to influence the uncertainty of results (as reflected in the confidence interval) of a meta-analysis using a fixe...

fixed-rate payer
A party in an interest-rate swap making a series of identical payments, eg, on the coupon of a fixed-interest instrument such as a bond, and receiving the floating rate....

fixed-rate payer
A party to an interest rate swap agreement whose payment is based on a swap rate, the coupon of a long-term fixed income instrument or is otherwise set at the same level during each payment interval. Often called the buyer of the swap or said to be long the swap. Also called swap buyer....

fixed-rate payer
In an interest rate swap, the counterparty who pays a fixed rate, usually in exchange for a floating-rate payment....

fixed-rate receiver
The party receiving a fixed rate and paying floating under a swap....

flan
Alternative name for blank or planchet, the piece of metal struck between dies to produce a coin or medal....

flash flood
A flood of short duration and abrupt rise with a relatively high peak rate of flow, usually resulting from a high intensity of rainfall over a small area ; A sudden, brief flood of great volume, most often due to very heavy rains in a given area....

flash flood
A sudden local flood of great volume and short duration....

flat tax
This is another term for a proportional tax....

flexible exchange rate system
exchange system determined by market forces: an exchange rate system in which the values of participating currencies are free to change in relation to one another according to market demand and supply for each currency...

flexible work schedules
means a work schedule established under 5 U.S.C. 6122, that -- (1) in the case of a full-time employee, has an 80-hour biweekly basic work requirement that allows an employee to determine his or her own schedule within the limits set by the agency; and (2) in the case of a part-time employee, has a biweekly basic work requirement of less than 80 ho...

flexitime
Arrangements under which there is no fixed time at which the day`s work must commence and end. In the commonest pattern, within the flexible periods at either end of the working day employees choose their own times for starting and finishing work; during the so-called `core time` sandwiched between these two periods they are required to be present....

flexitime
Flexitime is a system that permits variable times of arrival and departure within limits set by managers. A specified number of hours have to be completed during a given period, but the times of work can be altered. Usually, but not always, there is a core period during which everyone must be in the office....

flextime
An arrangement by which employees may set their own work schedules, especially their starting and finishing hours. Also called flexitime....

float
When a company is publically traded, a distinction is made between the total number of shares outstanding and the number of shares in circulation, referred to as the float. The float consists of the company`s shares held by the general public. For example, if a company offers 2 million shares to the public in an IPO and has 20 million shares outsta...

floater
A bond whose interest rate varies with the interest rate of another debt instrument, e.g., a bond that has the interest rate of the Treasury bill +.25%....

floating exchange rate system
The flexible exchange rate system in which the exchange rate is determined by the market forces of supply and demand without intervention....

floating rate note
Floating rate notes are medium- and long-term titles with regular floating rate coupons linked to movement in an interest rate representatitive of the money market....

floating-rate payer
A party in an interest-rate swap making a series of variable interest-rate payments. These are generally set with reference to an index or benchmark rate specified in the swap contract....

floating-rate payer
In an interest rate swap, the counterparty who pays a rate based on a reference rate, usually in exchange for a fixed-rate payment....

floating-rate receiver
The party receiving a floating-rate and paying fixed under a swap agreement....

floored floating rate note
The Floored FRN prevents the investor`s return from falling below a certain minimum level, at the cost of a return that is slightly below the market if rates rise....

florin
1. A guilder. 2. A British coin worth two shillings. 3a. A gold coin first issued at Florence, Italy, in 1252. b. Any of several gold coins similar to the Florentine florin, formerly used in Europe. AHDict...

flow
A flow variable is one that has a time dimension, or flows over time (like a stream). A stock variable is one that measures a quantity at a point of time (like the water in a lake). Income represents dollars per year and is thus a flow. Wealth as of December 1985 is a stock. Similarly, investment is a flow, and capital is a stock....

flowchart
Flowchart is a representation, primarily through the use of symbols, of the sequence of activities in a system (process, operation,function, or activity)....

fly tipping
Fly-tipping or dumping is a British term for illegally dumping waste somewhere other than an authorized landfill. It is `the illegal deposit of any waste onto land i.e. waste dumped or tipped on a site with no licence to accept waste`...

Focus on Transition
The Focus on Transition contains CEEC-related economic analyses and recent data as well as descriptions of CEEC-related events hosted by the OeNB. OeNB...

follow-up
Follow-up by internal auditors is defined as a process by which they determine the adequacy, effectiveness, and timeliness of actions taken by management on reported audit findings....

footloose industry
Footloose industries are those that do not have to locate close to raw materials (unlike the early iron and steel industry that had to locate close to iron ore and coal etc). Footloose industries locate in pleasant environments near transport routes and near the markets. An example of a footloose industry would be a hi-tech industry such as computi...

Fordism
The American English expression Fordism goes back to Henry Ford, who invented mass production and perfected the assembly line method of manufacturing early in the 20th century....

forecast
Prospective financial information (forecast and projection): FORECAST: Prospective financial statements that present, to the best of the responsible party`s knowledge and belief, an entity`s expected financial position, results of operations, and changes in financial position. A FINANCIAL FORECAST IS BASED ON THE RESPONSIBLE PARTY`S ASSUMPTIONS REF...

foreclosure
Foreclosure is the equitable proceeding in which a bank or other secured creditor sells or repossesses a parcel of real property (immovable property) due to the owner`s failure to comply with an agreement between the lender and borrower called a `mortgage` or `deed of trust`. Commonly, the violation of the mortgage is a default in payment of a prom...

foreign direct investment
Foreign direct investment reflects the objective of obtaining a lasting interest by a resident entity in one economy (`direct investor`) in an entity resident in an economy other than that of the investor (`direct investment enterprise`). The lasting interest implies the existence of a long-term relationship between the direct investor and the ente...

foreign exchange risk
1. The risk of an investment`s value changing due to changes in currency exchange rates. 2. The risk that an investor will have to close out a long or short position in a foreign currency at a loss due to an adverse movement in exchange rates. Also known as `currency risk` or `exchange-rate risk`. This risk usually affects businesses that export ...

foreign exchange settlement risk
the risk that one party to a foreign exchange transaction will pay the currency it sold but not receive the currency it bought. This is also called cross-currency settlement risk or principal risk; it is also referred to as Herstatt risk, although this is an inappropriate term given the differing circumstances in which this risk has materialised....

foreign exchange transaction
Purchase or sale of the currency of one nation with that of another. Foreign exchange rates refer to the number of units of one currency needed to purchase one unit of another, or the value of one currency in terms of another....

forfeit
Confiscation (or forfeiture): Confiscation or forfeiture takes place when competent government or judicial authorities order that the ownership of specified funds or assets be transferred to the State. In this case, the original owner loses all rights to the property. Confiscation or forfeiture orders are usually linked to a criminal conviction and...

format
The rules of the layout, e.g., for a message type or field within a message type. The checks include, among others: presence of mandatory fields, absence of forbidden fields, field length restrictions, character restriction....

forward exchange rate
The exchange rate set today for a foreign currency transaction with payment or delivery at some future date....

forward price
The forward price of the bond is the value of the bond at the option`s exercise date as calculated today....

forward rate agreement
a forward contract on interest rates in which the rate to be paid or received on a specific obligation for a set period of time, beginning at some time in the future, is determined at contract initiation....

forward rate agreement
An agreement under which buyer and seller agree to exchange the difference between a pre-agreed fixed rate and the interest rate that will prevail on some future date. These rates are struck on the day of execution of the FRA. If rates rise the buyer receives the difference at maturity. If rates fall the seller receives the difference from the buye...

forward rate agreement
Forward rate agreements concern contracts by which the parties agree on the interest rate to be paid on a future settlement day. With a forward rate agreement with a period quoted as, for instance, six against nine months, an interest rate would be agreed on, which would apply for a three-month period commencing in six months` time. At the beginnin...

forward start option
A forward start option is an advance purchase of a put or call option that will become active at some specified future time. A premium is paid in advance, and the underlier and time to expiration are specified at that time. The strike price is determined when the option becomes active. Typically, it is set at-the-money based upon the underlier valu...

forward start option
Forward-start options, like standard options, are paid for in the present, but some contractual feature, such as the strike price, is not fully determined until an intermediate date in the future, but before expiration. Employee stock options typically have a forward start feature since their strike price is not fixed when the employee begins to wo...

four freedoms
The four main freedoms: freedom of movement for goods, freedom of movement for persons, freedom of movement for services, and freedom of movement for capital (free movement of capital)....

fractional coin
A coin, the face value of which is a fractional unit of the denominated currency, generally minted of silver....

fractional currency
Emergency issue of small-denomination notes by the USA in 1863-5, following a shortage of coins caused by the Civil War. This issue superseded the Postage Currency notes, but bore the inscription `Receivable for all US stamps`, alluding to the most popular medium of small change at that time. Denominations ranged from 3 cents to 50 cents....

framework principles
The framework principles are the core political principles, the essential elements of each proposal. They reflect the key political choices to be taken by the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers on the basis of a proposal by the European Commission. They determine the political direction and orientation, the fundamentals of each decisi...

franchise value
The present value of an enterprise`s prospective new investments, reflecting the application of a franchise factor that captures the enterprise`s ability to earn an above market rate of return on a specific level of investment....

fraud
Fraud encompasses an array of irregularities and illegal acts characterized by intentional deception....

FRB
Acronym for the Federal Reserve Board, the governing body of the Federal Reserve System. The Federal Reserve Board is comprised of seven members appointed by the President and subject to confirmation by the Senate. In order to ensure members` independence from political influence, each member serves a 14-year term. The FRB is responsible for settin...

free accrual
This is service for which neither you nor your employer made contributions. It can be credited to you during a health leave or total disability leave if you submit medical evidence that shows you meet HOOPP`s definition of partially disabled, totally disabled, or totally and permanently disabled....

free and clear of encumbrances
free and clear of encumbrances. Encumbrances. This term refers to the legal interests of others that diminish the value of the property, such as mortgages, judgments, liens, leases, deed restrictions, and easements....

free float
Shares in public hands - shares are not deemed to be in public hands where they are held by a director of the company or its subsidiaries, individuals connected with the directors and any person holding 5% or more of the shares....

free float of stock
Free float is the share capital of a company which is freely available for trading in the market....

free float of stock
The free float can be defined as the `investable` proportion of a company`s equity available through the market....

freedom of establishment
The principle of freedom of establishment enables an economic operator (whether a person or a company) to carry on an economic activity in a stable and continuous way in one or more Member States. The principle of the freedom to provide services enables an economic operator providing services in one Member State to offer services on a temporary bas...

freelance
Term used to refer to individuals who are not in a fixed and permanent employment relationship but carry out individual commissions (usually not in immediate succession) on the basis of contracts for services . In this situation, the freelance is free to choose whether or not to accept a particular commission, but he or she has no automatic legal e...

free-rider problem
The problem, arising in many situations, that no individual is willing to contribute towards the cost of something when he hopes that someone else will bear the cost instead. The problem arises whenever there is a public good. Everybody in a block of flats may want a faulty light repaired, but no one wants to bear the cost of organizing the repair ...

freeter
Japan has a name for its swelling legion of part-timers. They`re called freeters (derived from the English word free and the German word for worker, Arbeiter)....

frictional unemployment
Frictional unemployment is short term, encountered in searching for a job or from a temporary layoff....

frictional unemployment
Temporary unemployment caused by dynamic changes in the economy. It takes time, for example, for new workers to search among different job possibilities; even experienced workers often spend a minimum period of unemployed time moving from one job to another. Frictional elements do not arise from dificient aggregate demand, but rather resemble `volu...

frictional unemployment
We can think of unemployment as consisting of three broad categories: cyclical, frictional and structural. Cyclical unemployment occurs as a result of a downturn in the business cycle, when firms lay off workers as a result of reduced demand. Frictional unemployment refers to those who are moving between jobs, and will begin a new job relatively qu...

front office
a firm`s trading unit and other areas that are responsible for developing and managing relationships with counterparties....

front-end load
sales charge paid when an individual buys an investment, such as a mutual fund, limited partnership, annuity, or insurance policy. The load is clubbed with the first payment made by an investor, so the total initial payment is higher than the later payments. The purpose of a load is to cover administrative expenses and transaction costs and sometim...

front-end money
Amount of money that must be charged or invested in the initial stage of a business transaction to demonstrate good faith as well as to help offset some expenses. For example, the customary 10% deposit on the initiation of an agreement of sale is a form of front-end money required to initiate the contract....