Unit 8 International Trade Progress Test
Name: _______________________________
Part 1 Reading
Task 1
5 points
Read the article below about the risks of international trade.
Choose the best sentence from A–E below to fill each of the gaps.
For each question 1–5, mark one letter.
Do not use any letter more than once.
There are a number of different risks that exist in international trade, and these can be divided into two major groups.
Political risks include the risk of cancellation or non-renewal of export or import licences. There is the risk of expropriation or confiscation of the importer’s company or re-negotiation of contracts, as the Bolivian government did to gas companies in 2006. There is the risk of the imposition of an import ban after the shipment of the goods, as the EU did with Chinese clothing exports in 2005. (1) ____.
Economic risks include the risk of insolvency of the buyer and the risk of non-acceptance of the goods being exported. (2) ____.
It is this last risk which most often concerns exporters and is one which can be guarded against in a number of ways. Exporters can use credit rating agencies to check the customer’s creditworthiness and to ensure against non-payment. (3) ____. A rating of AA by Standard and Poor shows the company has a very strong capacity to meet its financial commitments. Credit insurance can help protect against non-payment and the cost will depend on the level of risk which the rating agency assesses.
Another key way of managing risk is carefully to monitor payment methods and payment performance. (4) ____. As your relationship develops with customers you may wish to vary the payment methods and you should keep an eye on the developing political and economic situation in the countries to which you export.
In general you should always check a new customer’s credit rating before sending out the goods, and take out insurance if you are in any doubt about getting paid. You should clearly state the conditions of business and you should chase up invoices as soon as they become overdue, and not allow customers to get behind with their payments. (5) ____.
A If your customer seems to be getting into difficulties you should act quickly to recover any payments due and should not supply further goods, at least not without insurance.
B You may wish to offer open accounts to large and important customers who have always met their payment obligations, or expect advance payment from new customers.
C The buyer might fail to pay the amount due within six months after the due date.
D A country might impose exchange controls or there might be unexpected foreign currency shortages.
E These agencies, like Standard & Poor and Moody’s, rate companies on scales of credit worthiness and issue credit reports.
Task 2
15 points
Complete the text with the correct prepositions.
I've had a really bad day. First of all I had to apologize (1) ________ my boss
(2) ________ being late. Then I had (3) ________ convince John (4) ________ help me (5) ________ my project. He insisted (6) ________ checking (7) ________ Julie first to see if it was OK. We had to find a lot of quick solutions (8)________ some serious problems but then we heard (9) ________ Sarah’s new project. She had succeeded
(10) ________ selling her idea (11) ________ GBH Holdings. We had to celebrate and didn’t get any more work done until (12) ________ lunch. (13) ________ the afternoon I had to wait hours (14)________ John to come back. I'm really looking forward
(15) ________ the weekend.
Part 2 Writing
Write an email based on the following brief. Write about 50–60 words.
Your biggest and best customer, HJG International, on an open account, has unexpectedly been late in making a number of recent payments, and two large payments are overdue by 60 days.
Write an email to Elizabeth Morland, the finance manager:
· Point out that there are two overdue payments for 12,598 GBP and 6,758 GBP
· Say that other payments have been late
· Ask her to make the payments immediately
To: Elizabeth Morland
Cc:
Subject: Overdue accounts
Dear
Rewrite these sentences using the words given. Add any other words you feel necessary to communicate the meaning most accurately.
1 You need insurance when you are exporting goods.
take out
_____________________________________________________________________
2 Don't worry, we won’t be late in making any more payments.
assure
3 We expect you to pay soon.
forward
4 We’ll have to send one last letter asking for payment.
demand
5 They might not have enough money to pay this month.
flow
Part 3 Listening
Task 1 / Recording 3.22
Listen to Paul and Jenny discussing Paul’s trip to the States. Correct this summary.
Jenny will collect the tickets before six and return them to the office before 6.30. Paul says he has plenty of time because check-in is not until 21.15 and the finance committee meeting finishes about half seven. He’ll be able to see his kids as they’ll be in bed by quarter to eight. He’ll go home and collect his suitcase and then go to the airport. Jenny checks he has the files for the New York meetings and Paul says that as he has a meeting now, he’ll have to read them on the plane. He has six meetings in New York before Friday and then he has a day to look around New York. Jenny suggests he prepares for the Merosom meeting instead of looking around New York as he’ll be jet-lagged on Sunday when he returns.
Task 2 / Recordings 3.23–3.32
10 points
Listen to these ten conversations and correct the extracts below.
1 I think a small flat in the town centre should be a good investment.
2 I didn’t mean it.
3 Well, it could have better.
4 She already speaks seven different languages, and she’s learning Chinese incredibly fast!
5 But we’ve always done most of our business with them.
6 We’ll have to adapt the goods to their norms.
7 For a small percentage of the value of the goods, we will guarantee to pay you if the customer doesn’t pay you.
8 Our stock price has tripled.
9 Usually they're in contact at least once a week.
10 I can't get into the system!
Part 4 Speaking
Prepare a one-minute presentation on one of these topics. You have one minute to prepare your talk.
A
What is important when deciding on a method of payment for international customers?
· Customer history
· Credit rating
B
What is important when negotiating with someone from another culture?
· Focus of negotiation
· Communication style
C
What is important when trying to speak diplomatically?
· Using modal verbs
· Using an introductory warning
6
The Business Intermediate Tests / Unit 8 Progress Test
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