(I) influencing the supply of money and credit,
(2) regulating and supervising financial institutions,
(3) serving as a banker and fiscal agent for the government
(4) supplying payments and services to the public through depositary institutions.
The system is an unusual system of public and private elements and centralized and decentralized components. At the head of its formal organization is the Board of Governors, located in Washington, D.C. The seven members of the board appointed for 14-year terms by the President with the advice and concent of the Senate. At the next level are the regional Federal Reserve Banks. The Reserve Banks are not profit motivated. Instead their policy is based on the System's estimates of the needs of the economy. The organization of the System also includes The Federal Open Market Committee. It is the most important money policymaking body because it exercises broad control over the growth Of the nation's money supply. It also has charge of the System's Operations both in domestic securities market and in foreign Exchange markets. Two-fifths of the 12.600 commercial banks in the US belong to the System. National banks must be members; state-charted banks may join if they meet certain requirements. Each member bank holds 3 percent of its capital as stock in its Reserve Bank. About 25.000 other depositary institutions provide American people with banking services.
№18. Types of banks.
Now there are only a few banks, each with many branches in Great Britain (the Big Six — Barclays, Coutts, Lloyds, Midland, National Westminster and Williams and Glyns). They are clearing banks, i.e. they have a seat in the Clearing House. This is an arrangement for a quick settlement of payments between different banks. Those banks without a seat in the Clearing House get their cheques cleared by a bank which has, acting as an agent. Clearing is the process whereby the amount of a cheque is transferred from the drawer's bank to the payee's bank. The clearing banks have many competitors in different sections of their business. These rival bodies want to collect and use the public's savings for different purposes.
Merchant banks carry on a great variety of business, and each tends lo specialize in certain activities or in transactions with particular countries. Some activities, however, are basic to all of them. These are deposit banking, underwriting, and the management of client funds.
The National Giro is a nationally owned scheme for the fast transfer of payments through post offices.
One big drawback to the service provided by the clearing hanks is the restricted hours during which they are open to the public. This led to the establishment of money shops.
The accent is on the lending and not all money shops provide current account facilities, although some do; but attention is given to the provision of personal, home improvement and mortgage loans, life and general insurance facilities, investment advice, and savings accounts.
Similar lo them are money shops in chain stores, open where the store is open — the “in-store banks”. Of these the most numerous are those of the Cooperative Bank, which set up nine 'handybanks' in the Birmingham area and hopes that within two years there will be 500 of these banking points in Cooperative stores around the country. Such a handyhank gives facilities for cashing cheques, depositing money, ordering travel cheques, etc., and it is open all day Saturday.
№20. The company's structure and development on the basis of "Harper and Grant Ltd."
The company of Harper & Grant Ltd. was started forty-two years ago by Ambrose Harper and Wingate Grant. Wingate Grant died many years ago, and his son Hector is the present Managing Director. Ambrose Harper is the Chairman. He is very old man and he comes to attend the board meetings and keep an eye on the business.
The company started by making steel wastepaper bins for offices. These wastepaper bins are more safer than the old type of basket made of cane or straw. Wingate Grant captured a big contract with government offices.
From wastepaper bins, Harper & Grant began to manufacture other items of office equipment: desks, chairs, cupboards, filing cabinets and smaller objects, such as filing trays, stapling machines and so on, until now when there are fifty-six different items listed in their catalogue. All items are made of pressed steel.
The factory consists of. These are divided into the Tool Room, Works Stores, Press Shop, Machine Shops, Assembly Shop, Paint Shop, Inspection, Packing and Despatch Departments. There is also the Warehouse.
The firm has a history of slow, steady growth. But Peter Wiles - Production Manager, and John Martin - Sales Manager think that they should be more adventurous. They want modernising a business by using modern things to run a business such as electronic data processing, Discounted Cash Flow, budgetary control, corporate planning, P.E.R.T. (Project Evaluation and Review Technique), automation, etc. Harper &Grant Ltd., like their rivals, must get right up-to-date and enlarge their business, or they will be outpaced by a firm whose business organisation is better than their own.
№11. Pricing policies.
Everybody, who wants to start his own business, must know, that it’s very important to attract the customers. There are many ways to do it. For example, to introduce new items of goods.
Economists say that the most important thing for sellers is to charge the appropriate price for goods. There are two types of pricing policy: price emphasis(политакцентировРдлястимулсбыта) and price de-emphasis(Робразовнаоснощу-йцен-титов).
Price emphasis policy emphasizes low prices. And this encourages sales. We must know that it has a weak point, because this policy doesn’t provide extra services. But it let sellers get more money, because this price determines a big number of sales.
A good example of price emphasis is “loss leader” pricing. It means that a seller chooses one item and sells it at very low price. There is also off-even pricing or “odd-pricing”.
Businessman must start with specially low prices in order to compete with well-known goods. He can raise the price when his customers get accustomed to a new brand, and they will continue to buy it.
Next type of pricing policy (price de-emphasis) concerns high quality expensive items. Seller doesn’t call attention to the price at all. Sometimes when the price rises, it convince some customers that the product must be of high quality, or will soon become very hard to get. And this may increase sales.
№ 12 The rights of a customer and the responsibilities of a supplier.
Many people think that complaining about faulty goods or bad service is never easy. Most of them dislike making a fuss. However, when you are shopping, it is important to know your rights.
When you buy something from ashop, you are making a contract. But you want to make sure if this contract means that it's up to the shop to deal with your complaints if the goods are not satisfactory. The first thing that comes to your mind is that the goods must not be broken or damaged and must work properly. The second thing that you find important is that the goods must be as described - whether on the pack or by the salesman. It makes you understand the third principle: The goods should be fit for their purpose. This means the purpose for which most people buy those particular goods. If you wanted something for a special purpose, you must have said exactly what for.
You are quite sure that if the shop sells you faulty goods, it has broken its side of the bargain. And that is absolutely right. In this situation customerhave the right to return the goods and have a complete refund.
At that time if the good is broken and it was your fault than seller shouldn’t return your money to you. That’ll be his right.
There are four golden rules:
Examine the goods your buy at once. If there are faulty, tell the seller quickly.
Keep any receipts you are given. If you have to return something, the receipt will help to prove where and when you bought it.
Don’t be afraid to complain. You are not asking a favour to have faulty goods put right. The law is on your side.
Be persistent. If your complaint is justified, it is somebody’s responsibility to put things right.
№13 The cost of growth.
Long-range economic growth depends on producing capital goods. Everyone who works contributes to the growth of capital resources. Your labor must be valuable enough to earn more than just the money to cover your wages. In recent years many people have argued that economic growth is a mixed blessing.
One of the advantages of economic growth is the creation of new jobs. Some people have jobs that did not exist 20 years ago. Part of them makes their living operating the computers. Millions of workers have jobs that computers have made easier.
However, the introduction of computers spelled unemployment for many workers, for example for typesetters. It also cut the managers’ stuff, make the management easier. Unemployment is the most undesirable consequence of economic growth.
Unemployment causes social and economic problems. Those who lost their jobs can hardly ever find new full-time job with a good wage. Many of the workers take jobs delivering flowers, polishing glass, stock-clerking, or driving taxes. Others do such odd jobs as painting and home repairs to earn income. Some of them try retraining programs, but find that employers are reluctant to hire older, experienced persons as beginners.
Retraining in new skills is only one solution to the problem, and not a simple one. Retraining is more useful to the young than to the old.