category killer	a major organisation that puts out of business smaller companies
chartered accountant	a qualified professional accountant in the UK
cheap money	low interest rates
clicks and mortar	hybrid businesses involved in e-commerce and traditional stores
Clintonomics	economic policy of US President, Bill Clinton
closed economy	an economic system in which no external trade takes place
closing price	the price of the last transaction at the end of the trading session
COLA	cost of living adjustment; modifying the level of earnings in proportion to the level of inflation
collateral	property or goods used as security against a loan
commercial bank	a bank that provides services to individuals
commodities	a good or service, e.g. cotton, wool or a laptop
commission	a payment made to an intermediary often calculated as a percentage of the value of goods or servi
competition	rivalry between companies
competitive advantage	a factor giving a company supremacy over competitors
comprehensive income	total income
conglomerate company	a company that owns a diverse range of businesses in different industries, a holding company
consolidated debt	the use of a large loan to eliminate smaller ones
contingency plan	action to be implemented only upon the occurrence of anticipated future events other than those
corporate bond	a long-term bond issued by a corporation
corporate fraud	a financial crime committed by a corporation
cost cutting	a reduction of costs on all operations
cost-effective	offering the maximum benefit
creative accounting	the use of accounting methods to hide aspects of a company's financial dealings in order to make
credit	a financial arrangement to buy goods or services and pay for that at a later date
credit ceiling	the largest amount that a lender will permit somebody to borrow
credit crunch	a situation in which money for borrowing is unavailable
creditor	a person or entity to whom money is owed
credit rating	an assessment of somebody's creditworthiness
credit risk	the possibility that a loss may occur in connection with a credit
current assets	cash or assets that are readily convertible to cash
current liabilities	money owed which falls due for payment within one year
cyclical unemployment	temporary unemployment
daisy chaining	creating artificial transactions in order to make a particular security appear more active than
dear money	money which has to be borrowed at a high interest rate
debt collection agency	a business that secures the repayment of debts for third parties
debt counselling	a service offering advice and support to individuals who are financially stretched
debt rescheduling	the reorganisation of debt repayments
debtor	a person or entity owing money
debtnocrat	a senior bank official who specialises in lending large sums, e.g. to developing countries
deed	a legal document that details the transfer or sale of a property
deep pocket	a company or an individual that provides funds for another company
default	failure to comply with the terms of a binding legal agreement
deflation	a reduction in the general level of prices
depression	a slowdown in economic activity
digital cash	money that exists in electronic form
digital economy	an economy in which e-commerce dominates
direct debit	a claim on an individual or organisation by a creditor and paid by the individual's or organisat
discount	a reduction in the price
diversification	increasing the variety of business, service or product types]
divestment	a proportional reduction in an ownership stake
dividend	an amount payable to shareholders from profits