M plc is an IT company that bids for large contracts to sell computer systems and also to service existing systems. M plc's senior management has always set budgets which are hard to achieve and have made no allowances for the recession.
The economy has improved and M plc's senior managers have made the budget even more optimistic. The budgeted sales target has been increased by 40%.
In the past, sales staff have not tried to achieve the budget sales because it was generally believed that the targets were impossible to reach.
M plc has recently appointed a new Sales Director who has decided that sales staff will be dismissed if they fail to meet sales targets for three successive months. He is also looking for higher sales margins than were achieved before.
What are the likely consequences of the new Sales Director's policy?
HWG is a large company which grows and processes coffee The coffee is sold to supermarkets, branded with their names for sale as "own brand" products HWG brands and packages the coffee using the supermarkets' own designs
HWG's directors are considering a strategic proposal to develop a range of coffees to be sold under a brand that HWG will develop
Which TWO of the following should the directors consider as part of their strategic analysis?
Multinational companies have a variety of methods by which to manage currency risk.
Select ALL internal hedging methods from the following list.
IOP manufactures aircraft engines. The company is presently engaged in a scenario planning exercise to consider the implications of a possible ban on the use of fossil fuels by the year 2040.
Which TWO of the following would be realistic responses to the scenario?
SDF is a quoted company. Which of the following matters should normally be dealt with by SDF's audit committee?
G plc has decided to move its production plant to overseas Country A. This would make the product cheaper to produce. The technology used to make the product is very advanced and some of the staff would have to move to Country A.
The Production Director has identified that there are some political risks in moving to Country A.
Match the methods of reducing the political risks associated with the move to Country A with the corresponding risks.
VBN's home currency is the V$. On 1 January, VBN must make a payment of C$2 million on 31 March of that same year.
On 1 January the spot exchange rate was V$1 = C$0.4.
On 1 January VBN paid $180,000 for a call option to buy C$2 million for V$5.5 million on 31 March. VBN's cost of borrowing was 8% per year.
On 31 March the spot rate was V$1 = C$0.45.
What was the total cost, including the cost of the option, of settling the payable?
An IT security consultant has been asked to conduct a forensic analysis of a client’s systems after the discovery of a system breach The consultant discovered several fake user accounts that appeared to have been created by the perpetrators of the breach Before deleting the accounts, the consultant took care to copy as much detail as possible concerning the accounts.
Which TWO of the following are valid explanations for the consultant's decision to copy the details concerning the fake accounts'?
GUJ A small but rapidly expanding company has recently opened several branches in locations far away from the Head Office. All of the branches are relatively small with no one branch accounting for more than 5% of turnover. Management has decided that the company is not yet large enough to install an Internal Audit function but is, nonetheless, concerned about maintaining adequate control and monitoring at the branches whilst allowing Branch Managers the opportunity to react to local circumstances as appropriate.
Which of the following measures would assist Head Office management in maintaining appropriate monitoring and control at the branches?
Company W produces mobile phone components and has recently tendered for a substantial contract. The results of the tendering process will not become available until three months from now. If the company is successful it will require 2,000 units of a commodity which is currently traded in an open commodity market for $740 per unit. However, there has been speculation that this commodity could increase substantially in price over the next three months and so the company is considering purchasing the commodity now and storing it for three months.
The funds to buy the commodity would be borrowed at an annual interest rate of 7% and the storage cost of the product would be $5.40 per unit per month. The storage costs would be paid at the end of the three month storage period.
Which of the following represents the gain or loss (to the nearest thousand dollars) that will accrue to Company W assuming that the price of the commodity rises to $800 in three months' time?
