Occupation groupings are a system of classifying people according to occupation. The classification was originally based on information obtained by government census, it was later developed by market research. The classifications are used by the advertising industry to identify potential markets. The groups are A, B, C1, C2, D,and E. Research Occupation Groupings
An occupational pension is a pension derived from a private pension scheme organized by the employer or employers for whom the recipient used to work. It is distinguished from a state pension which is financed from national insurance. Research Occupational Pension
An off-the-shelf company is a company that is registered with the Registrar of Companies although it does not trade and has no directors. It can, however, be sold and reformed into a new company with the minimum of formality and expense. Such companies are easily purchased from specialist brokers. Research Off-the-Shelf Company
The Office of Fair Trading is a British government department that, under the Director General of Fair Trading, reviews commercial activities in the UK and aims to protect the consumer against unfair practices. Established in 1973, it is responsible for the administration of the Fair Trading Act (1973) , the Consumer Credit Act (1974), the Restrictive Trade Practices Act (1976), the Estate Agents Act (1979), the Competition Act (1980), and the Control of Misleading Advertisements Regulations (1988). Its five main areas of activity are: consumer affairs, consumer credit, monopolies and mergers, restrictive trade practices, and anti-competitive practices. Research Office of Fair Trading
The Office of Telecommunications (OFTEL) is a British government body set up in 1984 to supervise the telecommunications industry. It is responsible for issuing licences, regulating competition in the industry, and protecting the interests of the consumer. Research Office of Telecommunications
The official receiver is a person appointed by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to act as a receiver in bankruptcy and winding-up cases. The High Court and each county court that has jurisdiction over insolvency matters has an official receiver, who is an officer of the court. Deputy official receivers may also be appointed. The official receiver commonly acts as the liquidator of a company being wound up by the court. Research Official Receiver
The Ohio Company was an American colonial land company. In 1749 George II granted to a band of wealthy Virginians, calling themselves the Ohio Company, a tract of land containing 500,000 acres, and lying mostly to the west of the mountains and south of the Ohio River. Thomas Lee was the projector of this company, but it was later conducted by Lawrence Washington. The conditions of the grant were that 100 families should be established upon it, a fort should be built and a garrison maintained. Numerous store houses were also established.
A second Ohio Company was formed on March the 1st, 1786, on the suggestion and in the house of Rufus Putnam, of Rutland, Massachusetts. On March the 3rd, Putnam, Cutler, Brooks, Sargent and Cushing reported an association of 1000 shares, each of $1000 in Continental certificates, or $125 in gold. A year was allowed for subscription. Land was to be purchased from Congress, in tracts lying between the Ohio and Lake Erie. On May the 9th, 1787, Parsons, agent for the company, appeared before Congress and was well received. Congress granted certain lots free of charge, and an enormous tract was bought at about eight or nine cents per acre in specie. Colonization was immediately begun, and slavery was prohibited. The company had much influence in shaping the Ordinance for the Government of the Northwest Territory. Research Ohio Company
An oligopoly is a market in which relatively few sellers supply many buyers, each seller recognising that he can control his prices to a certain extent and that his competitors' actions will influence his profits. This is a departure from the assumption, in perfect competition, that there are a large number of firms in any particular market. If there are only a few firms, each one may be able to influence the market price by controlling the amount they produce, thus earning higher profits.
Oligopoly is a common feature of the real world; studies have shown that in developed countries markets tend to become more oligopolistic. There is some doubt, however, as to whether prices really are higher under oligopoly. Research Oligopoly
An open economy is an economy in which a significant percentage of the goods and services are traded internationally. The degree of openness of an economy usually depends on the amount of overseas trade in which the country is involved or the political policies of its government. Thus the British economy is relatively open, as the economy is significantly dependent on foreign trade; the American economy is relatively closed as overseas trade is not very important to its economy. Research Open Economy
An ordinary share is a fixed unit of the share capital of a company. Shares in publicly owned quoted companies are usually traded on stock exchanges and represent one of the most important types of security for investors. Shares yield dividends, representing a proportion of the profits of a company. In the long term, ordinary shares, by means of capital growth, yield higher rewards, on average, than most alternative forms of securities, which compensates for the greater element of risk they entail. Research Ordinary Share
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is an organisation created in 1960 to unify and co-ordinate the petroleum policies of member countries and to protect their interests, individually and collectively. Present members are Algeria, Ecuador, Gabon, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Venezuela. OPEC was not of great importance until the early 1970s, when increased international demand made oil a relatively scarce commodity. In 1973 to 1974 OPEC brought about a four-fold increase in the international price of crude petroleum to more than $11 per barrel; the price exceeded $30 per barrel by the early 1980s, helping to fuel inflation in many industrialised nations. Subsequently, the combined effects of conservation and recession in the oil- consuming nations weakened the oil market, leading to sharp declines both in petroleum prices and in OPEC's political and economic influence. OPEC's attempts to stabilise prices by limiting production during the second half of the decade were thwarted by some member countries, which exceeded their production quotas in order to pay for military equipment or to finance expansion programs undertaken during the boom years earlier. Iraq's take- over of Kuwait in 1990 temporarily disrupted the oil markets, but the price gradually dropped to a pre- invasion level of about $20 a barrel. Research Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
An overdraft is a loan made to a customer with a cheque account at a bank or building society, in which the account is allowed to go into debit, usually up to a specified limit (the overdraft limit) . Interest is charged on the daily debit balance. This is often a less costly way of borrowing than taking a bank loan because with an overdraft, credits are taken into account. Research Overdraft
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Money
Research Obolus
