In order to express the intended meaning, we can give stress to any of the words in a sentence.

Inlay wax patterns should be invested as soon as possible after fabrication in order to minimize changes in shape causedby( )

A．drying ofthe wax

B．reduction in temperature

C．volatilization of wax components

D．relaxation of internal stresses

The author uses the word “only” in line 23 most likely in order to______

A．highlight the oddity of the service improvement

B．emphasize the relatively low value of the investment in service improvement

C．distinguish the primary attribute of the service improvement from secondary attributes

D．single out a certain merit of the service improvement from other merits

E．point out the limited duration of the actual service improvement

The Stock Exchange

Who Needs the stock Exchange

Everybody does. Nine out of ten of the adult population of this country save or invest in one form. or another. The Stock Exchange provides a way in which this money can be put to work.

If you are buying a car, a television, or a washing machine, you may pay for it out of your savings, or borrow from a bank or hire-purchase company. If you are buying a house, you may get a mortgage from a building society.

A business needing new machinery, or new premises, has similar options. Some of the costs can be met from profits kept in the business, in other words, paid for out of savings, but as a company grows, this becomes increasingly difficult.

From your point of view as a saver, you may be saving up for something definite, such as a down payment on a car or house, or simply in order to have money available, should some unforeseen emergency arise.

Either way, you will not be prepared to entrust your savings to a company seeking cash for expansion unless you can be sure you will be able to get it out again. If the company has meantime invested your money in launching a new product, it will not be able simply to hand it back. Nor can it usefully hand over a bit of the factory roof, or two or three tons of soap, to redeem the investment.

How then can these conflicting requirements be met?

The answer is through the Stock Exchange. When the saver needs his money back, he does not have to go to the company with whom he originally placed it. Instead, he sells his shares to some other saver who is seeking to invest his money.

Large companies need a way to; tap the savings of the public at large.

An oil-field in the North Sea can cost hundreds of millions of pounds to bring into production. Not until the oil is flowing can it contribute to the profits of the company that discovered it.

The same problem, on a smaller scale, faces practically every company trying to develop new products and create new jobs.

There can be little prospect of raising, the sort of sums needed from friends and acquaintances, and while banks may be willing to provide short-term finance, they are generally reluctant to provide money on a permanent basis for long-term projects.

So companies turn to the public, inviting people to lend them money, or take a share in the business in exchange for a share in future profits. This they do by issuing stocks and shares in the business through the Stock Exchange. By so doing they can mobilize the savings of individuals and institutions, both in the U. K. and overseas.

Many of the services needed both by industry and each of us are provided by government or our local authorities. Without hospitals, roads, electricity, railways, this country could not function. All these, require continuous expenditure on new equipment and development if they are to serve us properly, requiring more money than is raised through rates and taxes alone.

The government, local authorities, and nationalized industries therefore frequently need to borrow money to finance major capital spending, and they, too, come to the Stock Exchange.

There is hardly a man or woman in this country whose job or whose standard of living does not depend on the ability of his or her employers to raise money to finance new development. In one way or another, this new money must come from the savings of this country. The Stock Exchange exists to provide a channel through which these savings can reach those who need finance.

Who Are the Savers?

Many attempts have been made to find out how many savers there are in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. It is difficult to be sure, because one person may have a savings bank account, another a bank deposit book, another a b

A．Y

B．N

C．NG

Amal Airline (Amal) is the national airline of Jayland. It was originally owned by the government but was listed on the local stock exchange when sold to private investors more than 20 years ago. The airline’s objective is to be the best premium global airline.

Amal provides long- and short-haul services all over the world and is based at its hub at Jaycity airport. Amal has been hit by a worldwide reduction in air travel due to poor economic conditions. The most recent financial results show a loss and this has caused the board to reconsider its position and take action to address the changed environment.

Amal has cut its dividend in order to conserve cash and it is trying to rebuild profitability by reducing costs by 14%. The airline is capital intensive as it requires to maintain a large fleet of modern aircraft. The two major costs for the airline are staff and fuel. In trying to renegotiate working conditions and pay, the management have angered the unionised workforce. There has already been some strike action by the unions representing the aircraft crew and ground staff and more is threatened. They are upset about changes to pension provisions which will require them to make larger contributions and also, a reduction in the number of crew on each aircraft which they believe will require them to work harder and so they want a compensating pay-rise.

Additionally, the board are pushing forward a large project to improve the design of the company website in order to increase the number of passengers who check-in on-line and so would not require as much assistance at the airport. The new design is also aiming to increase the number of passengers who book their tickets through the company’s website rather than other resellers’ websites or at booking agents. The project is currently two months behind schedule due to one of the main software suppliers becoming insolvent.

Finally, the board has been considering taking advantage of new technology in aircraft engines by making a large investment ($450m) in new low-noise, fuel-efficient aircraft in an effort to reduce the environmental complaints surrounding air travel and also cut costs.

Given all of the issues and projects affecting Amal, the CEO has tried to find a unifying view that will explain the airline’s performance. She has heard that the performance prism may provide such a framework.

As further background, the CEO has supplied the data below on Amal and two of its main competitors. Kayland Air is a government owned and run airline in the neighbouring country of Kayland. It has a similar mix of business to Amal and targets a similar market. Cheapo Air is currently one of the most successful of the new privately-owned airlines that have gained significant market share over the last 15 years by offering a cheap but basic short-haul service to customers in and around Jayland. Cheapo Air subcontracts many of their activities in order to remain flexible. The CEO wants you to calculate some suitable performance measures and explain the results.

Data provided by the CEO:

Data for the most recent calendar year

Note: A seat kilometre is generated for every one kilometre flown by an available seat on the company’s aircraft.

(a) Using the data provided, analyse the three airlines using appropriate performance indicators and comment on your results. (12 marks)

(b) Apply the performance prism model to Amal and suggest improvements to performance management including possible methods of performance improvement and also relevant performance measures. (14 marks)

6 Alasdair, aged 42, is single. He is considering investing in property, as he has heard that this represents a good

investment. In order to raise the funds to buy the property, he wants to extract cash from his personal company, Beezer

Limited, whose year end is 31 December.

Beezer Limited was formed on 1 May 1998 with ￡1,000 of capital issued as 1,000 ￡1 ordinary shares, and traded

until 1 January 2005 when Alasdair sold the trade and related assets. The company’s only asset is cash of

￡120,000. Alasdair wants to extract this cash from the company with the minimum amount of tax payable. He is

considering either, paying himself a dividend of ￡120,000, on 31 March 2006, after which the company would have

no assets and be wound up or, leaving the cash in the company and then liquidating the company. Costs of liquidation

of ￡5,000 would then be incurred.

Since Beezer Limited ceased trading, Alasdair has been taken on as a partner at a marketing firm, Gallus & Co. He

estimates his profit share for the year of assessment 2005/06 will be ￡30,000. He has not made any capital disposals

in the current tax year.

Alasdair wishes to reinvest the cash extracted from Beezer Limited in property but is not sure whether he should invest

directly in residential or commercial property, or do so via some form. of collective investment. He is aware that Gallus

& Co are looking to rent a new warehouse which could be bought for ￡200,000. Alasdair thinks that he may be able

to buy the warehouse himself and lease it to his firm, but only if he can borrow the additional money to buy the

property.

Alasdair has a 25% shareholding in another company, Glaikit Limited, whose year end is 31 March. The remaining

shares in this company are held by his friend, Gill. Alasdair is considering borrowing ￡15,000 from Glaikit Limited

on 1 January 2006. He does not intend to pay any interest on the loan, which is likely to be written off some time

in 2007. Alasdair does not have any connection with Glaikit Limited other than his shareholding.

Required:

(a) Advise Alasdair whether or not a dividend payment will result in a higher after-tax cash sum than the

liquidation of Beezer Limited. Assume that either the dividend would be paid on 31 March 2006 or the

liquidation would take place on 31 March 2006. (9 marks)

Assume that Beezer Limited has always paid corporation tax at or above the small companies rate of 19%

and that the tax rates and allowances for 2004/05 apply throughout this part.

Is it the different types of tea plants that determine the colour and aroma of tea? The answer is no.Actually, it is the processing of tea that finally decides the tea types.For example, black tea requires 100% oxidation and green tea requires almost no oxidation.So tea processing is quite an important factor in the production of tea.Anyway, the normal processing of tea includes the following four basic steps:

1.New leaves are spread in order to reduce water content until they are pliable enough to be rolled.This process is called withering.

2.The second step is rolling the withered leaves.Oils and extra moisture are released.This process can be done with machinery or by hand.

3.The third step is called oxidation or fermentation.In this process the leaves turn from green to bright copper in colour.This step decides what type of tea we want.

4.The last step is drying the leaves to stop the oxidation process.The leaves should be dried thoroughly without burning.

Decide each statement is T (true) or F (false) based on Passage B.

6.The processing of tea decides the tea types.

7.Green tea requires a little oxidation.

8.Withering makes the tea leaves release oils and water.

9.Rolling the withered leaves can be done only with machinery.

10.Burning the leaves is the last step of tea processing.

Urban Energy Planning for a Sustainable Environment

The People's Republic of China (China) is the world's most populous country and the second largest energy consumer, with a rapid economic growth that has led to sharp increases in energy demand. In order to address this issue, China has to make a large investment in energy development and production and in the improvement of energy efficiency.

At the beginning of 1998, the Chinese government enforced the Energy Conservation Law (ECL), promoting and encouraging energy efficiency as well as the development and use of renewable energy.

In November 2001, in the framework of the Sino-Italian Cooperation Programme for Environment Protection (SICP), the Italian Ministry of Environment and Territory (IMET) and the State Environmental Protection Administration of the People's Republic of China (SEPA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

According to the MOU, SEPA and IMET agreed to undertake the project titled Urban Energy Planning for a Sustainable Environment (UENP) at the municipal level. A set of "target" municipalities was identified within China's territory, allowing for a subsequent dissemination of the UENP approach to other locations with similar energy efficiency problems. Initially, the energy planning effort will be primarily focused on three cities: Jinan, Suzhou and Taiyuan.

Project Objectives

The general objective of the UENP is to identify and evaluate optimal solutions to reduce CO2 emissions and to improve the integrated environmental quality in the long run.

More specific objectives are:

the assessment within the "pilot" municipalities of the potential for an increase in energy efficiency in the most significant energy consumption sectors, taking into account the general structure of energy supplies and use and related environmental pollution issues.

the formulation of feasible energy planning for each one of the pilot municipalities which may serve as a basic support for and guidance to the local authorities in the energy development and environmental protection sectors.

The UENP will enable local governments to make appropriate decisions about energy production and consumption at the local level, for the industry, agriculture, service, and civil infrastructure sectors. The development of such a planning tool will involve both international and national experts as well as local experts and authorities in order to guarantee the sharing of the results.

Capacity Building

All of the activities included in Phases A, B and C will be performed through a close cooperation between the Italian and the Chinese expert teams. During the project, a specific program of training and capacity building for the Chinese experts will be activated.

Project Funding

The total cost of the project is 1.1 million Euro, including 0.3 million Euro for the activities to be performed by SEPA. CETMA will act as the implementation agency for the Italian side.

Duration of the Project

The duration of the project is estimated to be 18 months.

Methodological Approach

The UENP will consist of the following three phases:

Phase A: Energy Planning Framework

Aim of this phase will be to assess the current energy situation in China, with a national as well as a regional perspective.

This exercise will provide the conceptual and strategic framework for the activities to be developed in the following project phases. Phase A will include the following main activities:

review of the present conditions of the national and regional economics, energy sources and environment;

estimation of energy demand (medium and long term) and the potential load on the environment.

Phase B:

A．Y

B．N

C．NG

What can be inferred from the fourth paragraph?

A．The physicians are learning to invest in the stock market.

B．The study is carried out in the form. of stock investment.

C．Dr. Polgreen is experienced in stock investment.

D．All the participants are rewarded with 100 dollars.