balloon loan	a credit repaid in regular instalments with a single larger final payment
bang for the buck	return on investment
bank charge	an amount charged by the bank to its customers for services provided
banker's credit	a financial instrument typically issued by an exporter or importer for a short term that a bank
banker's draft	a bill of exchange payable on demand and drawn by one bank on another
banker's reference	a written report by a bank regarding a customer's creditworthiness
banker's hours	short hours of work
bank overdraft	borrowing from a bank on a current account
bankruptcy	the condition of being unable to pay debts
barefoot pilgrim	an investor who has lost everythiong in securities
barren money	money that is unproductive because it is not invested
barter	the direct exchange of goods
basket of currencies	a group of selected currencies used in establishing a standard of value for another unit of curr
take a bath	suffer a serious financial loss
bean counter	a derogatory term for an accountant
bearish	relating to unfavourable business conditions and falling prices
bear market	a market in which prices are falling and in which a dealer is more likely to sell securities rath
bell cow	a product that sells well and makes a reasonable profit
belt and braces man	a very cautious lender who asks for extra collateral as well as guarantees for a loan
bid	an offer to buy all or a majority of the capital shares of a company
bidding war	a competition between prospective buyers for the same stock or security
Big Bang	radical changes of practices on the London Stock Exchange
big bath	the practice of making a particular year's poor income look even worse by increasing expenses an
big GAAP	generally accepted accounting principles that apply to large companies
Big Three	Ford, Chrysler and GM
bilateral credit	credit allowed by banks to other banks
bond	a promise to repay with interest on specified dates money that an investor lends a company or a
bond issue	bonds sold by a corporation or government agency at a particular time and identifiable by date o
bond yield	the income one receives from a bond investment
bookkeeper	a person responsible for financial records
books of accounts	ledgers and journals used in preparing financial statements
bottom line	the line in a financial statement that shows net income or loss
breakeven point	the moment when a company makes neither a profit nor a loss
brokerage	a company whose business is buying and selling stocks for clients
bubble economy	an economy or a market in which prices for goods and services rise far above actual values
budget deficit	the extent by which expenditure exceeds revenue
budgeted revenue	revenue budget
budget surplus	the extent by which revenue exceeds expenditure
bull	somebody who anticipates favourable business conditions
bullish	relating to favourable business conditions
bull market	market in which prices are rising and in which a dealer is more likely to buy than sell
business risk	the uncertainty associated with the unique circumstances of a particular company
business segment	a distinguishable part of a business or enterprise
buyer's market	a situation in which supply exceeds demand
capital asset	property that the company owns
capital costs	expenses on the purchase of fixed assets, e.g. land and buildings
capital goods	stocks of physical or financial assets
cartel	an alliance of business companies formed to control competition and prices
cash crop	a crop, e.g. tobacco, that can be sold for cash
cash discount	a discount offered to a customer who pays for goods with cash
cash flow	the movement through an organisation of money that is generated by its own operations