Unit 7 Finance

Task 7 Speaking.

A:Have you completed the financial report for this quarter?

 B: Yes, here it is, income is here on the left, and expenditure is on the right.

 A: How do our earnings compare to last quarter?

B: Well, they're up from the last quarter, but we actually suffered a net loss over the three months. A: A loss? Why is that?

B: We updated the computer systems. It was pretty expensive.

 A: Oh yes, of course. B: But I expect us to make a profit in the next quarter. We'll finally collect the revenue from the Hilton project.

 A: And with any luck we'll get that small business grant too.

B: It could be a very good quarter for us.

A: Could you come up with an estimate for the upcoming quarter? I'd like to show that to the board.

 B: No problem. But there's no guarantee that we'll have a profit.

Task 8. Writing

The toxic waste has leaked into the local reservoir, which provides water to 2.7 million residents. Initial estimates are that cancer and birth defect rates may quadruple over the next decade.

If the company doesn't take action to mitigate the damage and clean up the contamination, potential losses from liability claims could top $7 million.