Capital
1. Capital is a man-made resource. Any product of labour and land which is reserved for use in the further production is capital.
2. Capital was created when people began to make simple tools and implements to assist them in the production of food, the hunting of animals, and in the transportation of their possessions.
3. It might be helpful at this stage to deal with the confusion which commonly arises over the meanings of three important terms: capital, money, and wealth. Capital, as already indicated, meansany produced means of production. Wealth is quite simply the stock of all those goods which have a money value. Capital, therefore, is an important part of the community's wealth.
4. Money is a claim to wealth. From the standpoint of the community as a whole, money is not wealth, since we can not count both the value of real assets and the value of the money claims to those assets. From the point of view of the individual citizen, however, money represents a part of his personal wealth since he sees it as a claim on assets held by other people. To the individual business person, therefore, any money he possesses he regards as capital since it gives him a claim on resources now possessed by others. We must be quite clear, however, that money is not part of the national wealth.
5. Capital is usually divided into two types: that which is used up in the course of production and that which is not.
6. Working capital consists of the stocks of raw materials, partly finished goods held by producers. These stocks are just as important to efficient production as are the machines and buildings. Stocks are held so that production can proceed smoothly when deliveries are interrupted and so that unexpected additional orders for finished goods can be met without changing production schedules. This kind of capital is sometimes called circulating capital because it keeps moving and changing. Materials are changed into finished goods which are then exchanged for money and this in turn is used to buy more materials.
7.Fixed capital consists of the equipment usedinproduction — buildings, machinery, railways and so on. This type of capital does not change its form in the course of production and move from one stage to the next — it is 'fixed'.
II Прочтите 3-ий абзац текста и письменно ответьте на следующий вопрос:
What does capital mean as already indicated?
Контрольная работа № 5
(для специальностей ЭФ)
Вариант 2
I Прочтите и устно переведите с 1 -го по 4 -ый абзацы текста.
Перепишите и письменно переведите 1,2,4 абзацы текста.
The sole proprietor
1. This is the simplest and the oldest form of business enterprise and often referred to as the one-person business. A single person provides the capital, takes the decisions, and assumes the risks. He or she is solely responsible for the success or failure of the business and has, therefore, the sole rights to such profits as may be made, or, alternatively, bears the sole responsibility for such losses as may accrue. The one-person business is still far more numerous than any other types of business organization, but in terms of total output employment, value of capital employed, or value of total output, it is relatively unimportant compared with the joint stock company.
2. The strength of this type of firm lies in the direct personal interest of the proprietor in the efficiency of his enterprise. Ownership and control are vested in one person who enjoys all the fruits of success and hence has a great incentive to run the firm efficiently Since the proprietor is the sole decision — taker and has no need to consult colleagues when changes of policy are required we should expect this type of organization to be extremely flexible and capable of quick and easy adjustment to changes in market conditions.
3. The great disadvantage of the sole proprietor from an enterprise lies in the fact that the owner is personally liable for the debts incurred by his firm and his liability is unlimited. All his personal possessions are at risk and may be seized to meet creditors demands in the event of the business becoming insolvent. Another disadvantage of this type of firm is the strict limitation of its ability to acquire capital for expansion. Finance is restricted to the amounts which the entrepreneur is able to provide from his own resources and whatever sums he can borrow on his own security.
4. We find the one-person business prevalent in farming, retailing, building, repair and maintenance work, and personal services such as hairdressing.
II Прочтите 3-ий абзац текста и письменно ответьте на следующий вопрос:
What is the great disadvantage of the sole proprietor?
Контрольная работа № 5
(для специальностей ЭФ)
Вариант 3
