Market Leader 4 Upper Intermediate Progress Test 03(1)

Name/Class:

Progress Test Test 33 (Units (Units 8–11) 9–12)

Listening

Vocabulary

Use of English Reading

Grammar

Functions Reading Writing Speaking

A Choose the best answer to each of the following questions.

1 How does the bank manager assess Maria’s business plan? a) inadequate b) satisfactory c) very strong 2 Maria wants to start up her business … a) within the next year. b) within a few months. c) as soon as possible. 3 Apart from a bank loan, what other financial support does Maria plan to get? a) venture capital from investors b) a loan from her father c) no other support 4 Maria wants to increase the total amount of the loan … a) by 30,000. b) to 50,000. c) by 80,000. 5 Maria tries to negotiate … a) the requirement for collateral. b) the interest rate. c) the repayment term. 6 The bank’s final offer includes: a) a loan of 80,000. b) an interest rate of 6 per cent on a five-year repayment plan. c) 6.5 per cent interest on a loan of 50,000. 7 The result of the negotiation is: a) an agreement. b) a breakdown in the discussions. c) a delay in making a decision. B Now listen to the conversation again. Which of the following does the bank

manager do during the negotiation? Your trainer will stop the tape at intervals to give you time to mark your answers. 8 ask a closed question 9 ask for details 10 clarify the situation 11 soften the bad news 12 make an unconditional offer 13 make a conditional offer 14 ask an open question 15 summarise what was agreed 22

MARKET LEADER TEST FILE

© Pearson Education Limited Limited 2000 2001

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Name/Class: Progress Test 3

Language

A Finance terms

Choose the word that best fits each of the definitions. 16 Money paid by a government or organisation to make something cheaper to produce or to buy: a) gift. b) stake. c) subsidiary. d) subsidy. 17 Money lent to someone so that they can start a new business: a) start-up. b) human capital. c) venture capital. d) working capital. 18 Capital that a company has from shares rather than loans: a) equity. b) assets. c) collateral. d) debt. 19 An amount of money owed by a business to a supplier or lender: a) loss. b) liability. c) credit. d) loan. 20 Money risked or invested in a business: a) security. b) collateral. c) damages. d) stake. 21 An arrangement between a bank and a customer, allowing them to take out more money from their account than they currently have in it: a) overdue. b) overdraft. c) overhead. d) overpayment. 22 A written promise that a company gives to a customer stating that it will repair or replace any product purchased if it breaks within a certain time: a) warranty. b) undertaking. c) credit note. d) advice note. 23 An amount of money paid for goods or services: a) salary. b) wage. c) charge. d) pay.

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Education Limited Limited2000 2001 Pearson Education © Pearson


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B Opposites

Complete the letter below with the opposite of each of the words in brackets.

AIRBANKS HOTEL SEAFRONT ROAD PORTSMOUTH PO1 4BY

Dear Sir or Madam We are writing to express our [satisfaction] ...................................24 at the poor quality of your service which we experienced during our stay last weekend. We found the staff of your hotel very [helpful] ...................................25 and [sensitive] ...................................26 to customer needs. In the restaurant, the portions of food were [adequate] ...................................27 and poorly cooked. Furthermore, the waiter showed astonishing [competence] ...................................28 by dropping a bowl of soup in my wife’s lap. When we complained to the restaurant manager about his disgraceful [management]...................................29, he was most [polite] ...................................30. He told us that if we were [happy] ...................................31 with the hotel restaurant, we could always go and eat somewhere else. We think your staff should be better trained in customer service …

C Replace each of the underlined words with a single word from the box that has the same meaning. extrovert popular

quiet arrogant aggressive hard-working moody laid-back unpredictable dynamic talented ambitious reliable

Tanya is someone you can always depend on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32. She is not very talkative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33, but she is conscientious and works long hours .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34. Jim, on the other hand, is rather relaxed about things . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... 35. He is outgoing among people . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 and everybody likes him ............ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37. Sam is gifted with many skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 and keen to get on in her career ..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39. She is very lively, but her moods are rather changeable ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40.

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D Noun phrases

Make up a noun phrase of two words, taking one from each box, and complete each of the sentences below. Add ‘of’ to the noun phrase where necessary. admission action

contingency

confidence

damage

liability

legal

limitation

loss plan

speed response

41 We have made all the arrangements for tomorrow’s event, but we should have a .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . in case things go wrong. 42 The problems with deliveries increased over the following three months, resulting in a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . in the supply network. 43 The qualities we value most in our suppliers are: reliability, consistency of product, and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . E Prepositions

Write the correct preposition into each of the gaps in the text below. The emphasis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 brands is essential ................. . . . . . . . . . 45 the company’s new strategy. The aim is to cut manufacturing costs by basing several different models .......................... 46 common engineering and parts. The strategy is dependent ................. . . . . . . . . . 47 distinctive styling and clever marketing to prevent customers switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 cheaper models. The company has invested millions of dollars .......................... 49 developing brand loyalties, and is now starting to profit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 its selling success. F Correcting mistakes

In each line of the text one word is wrong. Write the correct word on the line provided. It is impossible to overemphasise the importance of our individual contribute to the

51 . . . . . . ........

company’s profitability. By identify the components of profitability, each of us can target

52 . . . . . . ........

our daily actions more specifically. We can help improving profitability by continuously

53 . . . . . . ........

questioning our established work practices and procedures. Examine our daily routines

54 . . . . . . ........

and work patterns will focus our minds on the key factor that influences profitability: cut costs.

55 . . . . . . ........

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G Similarity and difference

Complete the sentences by combining phrases from each of the two boxes below. Refer to the table of figures for the information. France

Germany

Britain

% seats held by women in parliament

13

18

13

% change in population in the next 50 years

+1

–11

–4

litres of alcohol consumed per person per year

11

11

7.5

56 Women hold 13 per cent of seats in parliament in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . 57 ............. . . . . . . . . . . . . . has an increasing population. 58 France’s population is increasing slightly, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , where it is decreasing. 59 In Britain, the population will decrease by 4 per cent ............. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 The Germans drink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 The British drink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . in contrast to both just as much as less than either whereas France and Britain Germany nor Britain

neither

in Germany the figure is 11 per cent the French Britain and Germany the Germans or the French

H Modal perfect

Write the most appropriate modal verb in each gap. 62 You ........ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . have gone to the presentation on marketing in the 21st century. It was excellent! 63 She ........ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . have gone home already – it’s only 3 p.m. 64 It was foolish to risk so much money on the new dotcom company: we ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . have lost everything. 65 There were only two people who could have left this message. It wasn’t John, so it . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . have been Manuel. 66 You ........ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . have made all those photocopies. I’d already printed out copies for everyone. 67 I ........... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . have taken the airport bus, but the last one had left so I got a taxi.

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Name/Class: Use

of English Reading

Progress Test 3

Read the article and answer the questions that follow.

CUBAN CREATES ONLINE WORLD OF LEATHER

Grammar

I

II

III

IV

Functions José Suarez, a Cuban-born industrial engineer, found himself trading skins and hides almost by accident. He had gone to Russia in the early 1990s, hoping to make a quick fortune with Reading electronic goods. But because he could not convert his roubles into dollars, he needed a commodity he could easily sell abroad. Someone Writing suggested leather. The international markets for raw materials were booming, and his business took off. Speaking With leatherXchange.com, Mr Suarez’s new venture, he hopes to persuade the 170,000 participants in the $110bn global leather industry that they are better off doing their business over the Internet. ‘What we aim to do is help companies cut costs by replicating online what they now do offline,’ he says. The leatherXchange picked up 550 members in 40 countries in its first full year of operation, and is now adding 15 new members a week. Users pay an annual membership fee plus fees based on their online transactions and the use of the leatherXchange’s search engines, which earned revenues of $4m last year. It is a huge challenge. The industry is fragmented and ranges from the slaughterhouses and tanneries of the third world to the manufacturers of luxury leather goods in Italy and France. There are thousands of agents and traders; the biggest company has less that one per cent of the market. To begin with there were no internationally

V

VI

accepted standards to grade and classify the quality of skins and hides. Purchasers for big tanneries live on aeroplanes because the only way they can ensure that hides are of a desired quality is to inspect the merchandise themselves. Even so, 30 to 40 per cent of international consignments are typically turned back by dissatisfied buyers. To cut down on claims, Mr Suarez has written standards on how to treat hides, and how skins should be graded and classified. The grading standards and product definitions are now posted on the website, as are industry contracts to govern agreements between buyers and sellers. It is also the fragmented nature of the industry that could make an online leather marketplace a success. Ironically, it is in countries such as Brazil and India, with high transport and telecommunications costs, where the idea has really taken off. In Europe, the leather industry still prefers to deal with their suppliers personally, or over the phone. In the tough new environment for B2B ventures, every new service will have to earn its own way within two years, Mr Suarez says. The leatherXchange closed its first round of financing in October last year, receiving 11.5m from a group of financial backers. Mr Suarez hopes to raise an additional 5m soon. That, he says, should be enough to keep his venture afloat for the next two years, when it aims to break even. From the Financial Times

A Match each of the sections, numbered I to VI, with the most appropriate heading from the box.

a) b) c) d) e) f) g) h)

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Setting international standards Two years to make it pay From engineer to entrepreneur The problems of buying skins in Russia The leather industry today Future trends in the leather market A new way to trade leather Market responses to online leather trading



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68 I ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 II ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 III ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 IV ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 V ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 VI ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B Choose the best answer to complete each sentence.

Listening

Vocabulary

Use of English Reading

Grammar

Functions Reading

74 José Suarez started trading in leather because … a) it was a commodity that could be exported from Russia. b) it was a trade he was already familiar with. c) it would be easy to trade over the Internet. 75 His business in leather was … a) initially a failure. b) slow to make profit. c) an immediate success. 76 The aim of leatherXchange is … a) to change leather trading practices fundamentally. b) to help traders to reduce their expenditure. c) to help the market to recover from a crisis. 77 The leather industry … a) is in the hands of a few big companies. b) has many small companies involved in it. c) is dominated by Russian companies. 78 The main problem for purchasers of hides is … a) to be sure of good quality. b) to arrange transportation. c) to find suppliers. 79 The online leather marketplace is most widely used in … a) Western Europe. b) Countries where Internet use is highest. c) Countries with high telecommunications costs. 80 Financing Mr Suarez’s new venture … a) has been easy. b) requires a quick return for the backers. c) has resulted in long-term debt.

Writing Speaking

Write a letter from the Fairbanks Hotel in response to the letter of complaint in language exercise B of this test. Include the following points in your letter: • a general apology • your assurances that you will take action to make sure it never happens again • offer a voucher for two complimentary (i.e. free) meals in the restaurant, valid for 12 months • express hope that the customers will return to your hotel soon You should write about 100 words.

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Market Leader 4 Upper Intermediate Progress Test 03(1)

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