Lagged reserve requirement (LRR) [US]: A system in which banks are required to hold reserves with retrospective effect, i.e. in relation to the level of deposits in a recent past period. The maintenance period, normally of 1 week, is usually in respect of the preceding 2 weeks.
Market pull: A concept describing the ability of buyers to create demand for their wants. The concept suggests that ‘the market’ can demand products and services from firms, thereby ‘pulling’ products and services from them. There is, however, much debate in the literature about whether a market can pull products from firms or whether firms use their operations and technology to push products and services into the market; hence, the term technology push.
New issue market: That part of the capital market that provides new long-term capital, specifically the stock exchange. Borrowers in the new issue market may be raising capital for new investment or may be converting private into public capital; this is known as going public.
Oligopoly: A market which is dominated by a few large suppliers. Oligopolistic markets are often characterised by heavy product differenciation through advertising and other marketing ploys, with long periods of price stability intermittently disrupted by keen price competition.
Product differenciation/differenciation: The development of distinct and unique benefits or attributes in a product (specifically, a branded product or service) that is positioned in the market to appeal to a particular segment. This strategy reqires a firm to offer branded products that meet the needs of customers better than other firms, or that are perceived to do this better.
Quoted company: A company (incorporation) whose shares are listed on an official stock exchange.
Real time gross settlement (RTGS): A settlement system based on the immediate payment for a transaction, which is not reduced to take account of offsetting payments in the reverse direction. Its principal merit is that it protects against default by the debtor. The system is used for large-value payment transfers between organisations such as central banks.
Secondary bank (UK): A bank that has relatively few branches and therefore does not play a major role in the payments system as far as the general public is concerned. Included in the term are merchant banks, the British overseas banks and some finance houses.
Satisficing: Behaviour which attempts not to achieve the best possible outcome, but some reasonable outcome. The most common application of the concept in economics is in the behavioural theory of the firm, which does not assume companies strive to make the most possible profit but, instead, postulates that producers strive to make a reasonable profit.
Source: Penguin Int’l Dictionary of Business & Finance
Author can be reached on: ousafrik@yahoo.com, +220 5221982/7345313
