Development - Dead Cat Bounce | Delta Publishing

Dead Cat Bounce

Monday 5 July 2010

Hello and welcome to the ICFE blog.

Over the next two months, we’ll be looking at various aspects of preparing students for the ICFE. But before we do that, let’s take a look at how the financial crisis has affected not only the funds of investors, businesses and countries, but has made our language even more colourful, as new words and phrases are coined to help us understand it.

Let’s start with some of the most popular words and phrases of these turbulent times. ‘Bailout’, ‘subprime’, ‘financial tsunami’ and ‘stimulus package’ have all been voted word/phrase of the year by various sources in the last few years. I thought it would be a good way to kick off this blog with my top ten words that reflect the financial crisis and I’d like to invite you to add your own words.

In the classroom I mix up the words and definitions, and it makes a good warm up activity. Later, students can on prepare mini presentations to explain each situation in more detail or give example scenarios.

Clawback – a way of getting money back my strict and forceful methods, like taxation

Brickor mortis – the situation when very few properties are being sold by estate agents

Zombie company – this is an insolvent company which is kept alive by banks

Dead cat bounce – a temporary recovery from a decline in the market, followed by the market continuing to fall.

Fiscal stimulus – when a government cuts taxes or raises spending – or both – to boost demand in the economy

Jingle mail – when the occupiers of a house send the keys back to the bank because they cannot pay their mortgage

Liar loan – a loan which is issued to a borrower who has probably overstated his/her income and assets to apply for a larger loan

Distressed securities – these are the shares of companies that are near to bankruptcy and whose value has fallen very sharply

NINJA Loans – loans made to borrowers who have no income, no job, no assets, which means so that the only security is the value of their home

Capital cushion – the amount of capital a bank has got to protect itself in an economic downturn

I look forward to hearing your own ‘favourites’.

Julie

4 responses to Dead Cat Bounce

belgin yarba says:

July 6, 2010 at 10:58 am

Hi Julie,
My students are constantly asking me about new buzz words related to the financial crisis. Just this week, I was asked about ‘fallen angels’, ‘angel bonds’ and falling knives’. As a teacher – it’s impossible to know all these new terms. Where can we find these types of words to be able to keep one step ahead of them?
By the way ….. the definitions are below
Belgin

Reply
- Julie Pratten says:
  
  July 6, 2010 at 12:10 pm
  
  Hello Belgin,
  One way of constantly upgrading your own bank of financial terminology is to learn a few similar terms everyday. Investopedia is a good source for unusual financial terms and buzzwords you may not find in your dictionary. When you search for a word on investopedia, click on ‘related terms’ and it will give you at least three other terms that are similar or opposite the term you have searched for. You can use these ‘similar terms’ to create short reading/speaking activities:
  
  1. First search for any financial term.
  2. Click the ‘related terms’.
  3. Write down two other similar terms.
  4. Get students to look up the terms – and explain their similarities and differences.
  
  Some examples to get you started.
  
  Pullback – reversal – Bagel land
  Burn rate – zombies – trading below cash
  Teaser rate – lifetime cap – floater
  Black knight – Sleeping beauty – Lady Macbeth strategy
  
  Happy hunting!
  Julie
  
  Reply
belgin yarba says:

July 6, 2010 at 11:30 am

Oops ..sorry ..here are the definitions …
Falling knife – a stock or industry of which the current price or value has fallen significantly in a short period of time.
Air pocket stock – a stock that suddenly takes a dive, similar to what happens when a plane hits an air pocket. Air pocket stocks are usually caused by shareholders selling in response to unexpected bad news.
Fallen angel – a stock which is usually in a high position, but drops substantially.

Reply
Terry says:

October 14, 2010 at 5:04 pm

What is the opposite of “dead cat bounce”?

Reply

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