Financial Markets & Risks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Financial Markets & Risks - Essay Example They can be in the form of a guaranteed annuity or a cash balance that an employee can draw upon at retirement. A pension that is created by an employer for an employee is known as an occupational pension. The government or other organisations may also sponsor pensions. Pension plans are a form of deferred compensation. The United Kingdom pension system is characterised by three tiers. The first tier is that of Basic State Pension (BSP) which is provided by the state. There are several pension schemes in the second tier. The state, employers, or private sector financial institutions provide these schemes. These pension schemes may be divided into two broad types: Defined Benefit (DB) pension schemes, and Defined Contributions pension scheme (DC). The DB schemes include the State-Earning-Related-Pension Scheme (SERPS), and occupational pension schemes provided by employers. The DC schemes include the contribution pension schemes offered by employers, and the personal pension, or a stakeholder pension fund held with a financial institution. The third tier of UK's pension system is voluntary and it takes the form of additional voluntary contributions (AVCs and FSAVCs) into occupational or personal pension schemes. The pension schemes we need to focus on behalf of the company are occupational pension schemes. ... In the DB pension scheme, the retirement pension benefits are related to the member's final salary upon retirement, and length of service. This is a "funded" plan in which both employer and employee contribute towards the pension fund. A DC pension scheme is a scheme that provides an individual account for each employee participant. The benefits are solely on the amount contributed to the account, gains, expenses and losses allocated to the account. The plan contributions, which are fixed for both the employer and employee, are paid into the account for each member. These contributions are invested and the returns are also credited to the individual's account. On retirement, the member's account is used to provide retirement benefits. This is usually through the purchase of an annuity that provides regular income post retirement. The members also have the option to draw a certain lumpsum amount before purchasing annuities. These plans also may offer the facility to members to select the types of investments towards which the pension funds would be allocated. Relative Merits of DB and DC Schemes The contributions in case of DB schemes are higher to keep up with the cost of providing the defined retirement benefits. It is even higher for employers relative to employees. DB plans offer less mobility than the DC plans because the transfer costs and difficulty in transfer of funds is very high for the DB Plans. DC plans offer higher portability. Both the DB and DC plans offer tax relief on contributions to employers. Tax relief is usually higher in case of DB plans due to higher contributions. Unlike the DB schemes, in a DC scheme a member cannot predict his pension at the time of retirement, as it is difficult to predict what capital he will accumulate

Why Portugal was the First and the Last Colony Essay Example for Free

Why Portugal was the First and the Last Colony Essay Portugal is one of the many European nations that colonized different parts of the world. Its colonies spread from Asia, Africa and Latin America. Colonization has been defined as domination of a territory by a foreign power where the dominating power subjects the subordinate nation to exploitation, denial of freedom and direct ruling. Colonizing power usually impose their policies and control of most aspects of the local people. Portuguese domination of the foreign nation can be traced way back after the end of the Portuguese recapturing period in the twelfth century. During this time they started moving to the other parts of the world, this is overseas expansion. In 1415 this European power conquered port of Cueta in the Northern part of Africa. In the subsequent years Portuguese continued moving along the coasts of Africa where they established forts, seaports, and trade posts. (Cook, S 1997) There are several reasons why Portugal became the first nation to colonize, firstly the nation has been described as the one which kicked off the age of discovery ,this was way back in the 1400s. Portuguesese were the first to explore and sail through the Atlantic ocean, this enabled them to discover so many islands which they came to colonize. This discovery was propelled by the mobility of the citizens of this country. The information they gathered from these expeditions was very vital as far as conquering other parts of the world were concerned. Explorers such Vasco da Gama and Bartolomeu Dias helped in the establishment of ports and forts along the coastal regions of the areas they passed, this spread to as far as India. These explorers were later followed by armed groups who were keen on taking regions that were rich in resources. (Field house, D (1981) Enrique, D (1981) brings out another perspective that gave Portugal an upper hand as far as colonization was concerned, this nation was the first to get important concessions from the church, this concessions recognized the ownership of the Portugal over the territory which had already been discovered and those which had not been discovered. Pope also went ahead to give Portugal the exclusive rights to take over the lands in Africa. According to Sellsrtom, T (1999) Portuguese had a mentality that they were superior to other people and they had the right to live in the tropics and help in the assimilation of people from the entire racial group and make them one big nation. As a nation they clinged to the view of magnificent future through the guidance of an aura of dominance. This partly explains why this nation was clinging to their colonies. They vehemently opposed the United Nations decolonization declaration which was passed in the early 1960s terming the idea as intelligible and can not be applicable to Portugal as a nation. Portugeese dictator Antonio Salazar was firmly opposed to this idea, he moved ahead and changed the constitution to incorporate the colonies as overseas provinces or states. These overseas provinces were taken as part of Portugal process of assimilation; they were part and parcel of this nation. She wanted them to be recognized as part of her, this was strongly opposed by other nations as it was going against the declaration of decolonization. (McQueen 1997) (United Nation 1970) Portugal only came to grant independence to the country it was dominating after much pressure from the international community. Some of the last colonies in Africa Mozambique and Angola later came to be engulfed by the war which can be partly being blamed on this extended domination. Being the first nation to colonize and the last to grant independence places this European country at a unique position as far as colonial history is concerned.

Impermanence and Death in Sino-Japanese Philosophical Context :: Philosophy Buddhism Papers

Impermanence and Death in Sino-Japanese Philosophical Context This paper discusses the notions of impermanence and death as treated in the Chinese and Japanese philosophical traditions, particularly in connection with the Buddhist concept of emptiness and void and the original Daoist answers to the problem. Methodological problems are mentioned and two ways of approaching the theme are proposed: the logically discursive and the meditative mystical one, with the two symbols of each, Uroboros and the open circle. The switch of consciousness is suggested as an essential condition for liberation of the Ego and its illusions. Rational logic as well as the sophisticated meditative ways of selflessness and detachment are suggested when treating the Chinese and Japanese philosophical notions, and examples of the discussed topics from the texts given. The instructive seventh chapter of the classical Daoist work, Lie Zi, is analyzed in detail and put into contrast with the answers given to that problem in the Greco-Judeo-Christian tradition. When reflecting on immortality, longevity, death and suicide, or taking into consideration some of the central concepts of the Sino-Japanese philosophical tradition, such as impermanence (Chinese: wuchang, Japanese: mujo), we see that the philosophical methods developed in the Graeco-Judaeo-Christian tradition might not be very suitable. On the other hand, it is instructive to put them into contrast with the similar themes developed in the Graeco-Judeo-Christian tradition, since these problems present a challenge for a redefinition of "philosophy" which has traditionally regarded itself as a European (and in an even less acceptable variation as a "Western") phenomenon and therefore today the very borders of philosophical discourse known in European history as "philosophia" are reexamined (affected). By rethinking the history of philosophy as a single narrative, one might come closer to the movements related to the levels of consciousness that were activated in philosophical undertakings in various Asian philosophical schools. In this regard Japanese and Chinese philosophical traditions might be instructive, since from the beginning through the various stages of their development they have attempted to put into words the inexpressible. The awareness of the insufficiency of words brought many original solutions. In the Song dynasty, for instance China produced a variety of diagrams (tu), by which the philosophers and practitioners represented their theories, which often arose on the basis of meditation techniques and could not be fully transmitted by means of language alone. The illustration of the nine step process (known in Japan as kuso) is one such representation and it is taken here as a starting point for approaching the concept of impermanence and death in the Japanese phil osophical

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1. Stimulus generalization transfer a response learned to one stimulus to a similar stimulus. The benefit of stimulus generalization outweighs the disadvantage in strategic marketing. In the market today buyers consider perceptions, needs, product loyalty, age and income when purchasing a product. Stimulus generalization allows the market to offer new products with new benefits into an existing brand name product. Thus consumers can have several options to choose from, but some consumers are confused because there are so many different products.Some consumers like to stick to the same brand, some like to try something new and some will experiment from time to time. The advantage is being able to make new products such as: mouthwash, different flavored toothpaste, whiting strip and many more. Some of the disadvantages it has are so many brands and choices to choose from which consumers are not sure what to buy. It is better that there are so many options, but consumer are not sure wha t products are the best and then they have to purchase the product to find out the results.Normally most people will stick to the products that they are used to buy because they know those are going to satisfy their primary needs. 2. The marketers of Pepsodent and Colgate can decrease consumer confusion regarding toothpastes and related oral hygiene products by distinguishing the difference between the products they offer. For this reason, the identity of a particular product in the line should be made to stand out from the rest. Being that when one brand brings out a new product the other brand brings out a new one that is similar, it is basically a matter of personal choice and what works for that consumer and their situation

QSM coursework

With the development of technology, the students' consumption habits also change dramatically. The more smart phone and more sweet heart fast food. This sample report can show us degree students' habits on those ways clearly. Like, what kind of smart phone is the mainstream among the students? What kind of fast foods are students' favorite? 2. 0 Gender Figure 1 Gender Frequency Percent Female 28 52 Total 50 Mean 25 Median Mode Standard deviation 4. 24 Standard Deviation= -?4. 24 Figure 1 shows the gender of sample at SEG students.From this figure, it is found that most of students like McDonald's, there are 32 students for 64%. The second favorite fast food is Subway and KEF. There are 6 students like KEF and 6 students like Subway. For Pizza Hut, there are Just 4 students like it for 12%. Thus, Just few of students like other kind of fast food for 2 person. 6. 0 Religion Figure 5 Religion Buddhism 14 Christian Catholic Church Islam 20 NO Religion 8. 49 -?8. 49 The figure 5 illustrat es the religions of students. From this graph, most students do not have religion for 44%. The most religion is Buddhism for 28%.The Islam is the second most religion for 20%. It is found that Christian and Catholic Church are 4% and 4% respectively. 7. 0 Conclusion From these figures, I can find more than 90% students' age are from 19 to 24. Apple and Samsung the mainstream in their life, almost 85% students like these two brands. Meanwhile, Apple and Samsung are also the best companies. It is no doubt that McDonald's is the most favorite fast food among students. Lastly, for religion, the most biggest religion is Buddhism, and almost half students do no have religion for . PAP 1. Babe Assimilating, K. Revival,J. Divide, International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research Volume 2, Issue 10, October-2011 2. Merrier HIM, Rayon HA, et al. Fast food consumption and breakfast skipping: predictors of weight gain from adolescence to adulthood in a nationally representative sample. J Adolescent Health 2006; 39; 842-849. 3. Written by: Marlene Whimper, Ph. D. Published On: March 22, 2013 4. Paula Divine, Strain Lloyd and Ann Marie Gray Northern Ireland Social and Political Archive (ARK) February 2006