BUSINESS/ECONOMIC WRITING

- informs ordinary people about economic situations, and explains its importance to them

REQUIREMENTS

1. Accuracy
a. Ensure figures are accurate
b. If a mistake is made, quickly send a correction
c. Explain the importance, provide a brief analysis and essential background
d. Supply information to ‘ordinary’ people
2. Context
a. React to major events and be original in thinking
b. Stories should be directed towards a local audience
c. Try to look for the bigger picture

GENERAL RULES

1. Taking Notes
a. Write down your questions
b. Write dates for future references
2. Comparisons
a. Always provide historical comparison for new economic, corporate and financial figures
b. Comparisons may be from the previous month, the previous quarter, or from the same tie a year
i. EXAMPLE
ABC Coffee profits grew 35 percent to 100,000 dollars in 2007 as against the same
period last year.
3. Numbers
a. Spell out one to nine
b. If you are starting a sentence with a number, spell it out
c. Use one decimal place for percentages on most economic indicator movements
d. When writing about a number that is negative write “minus 46”
4. Quotations and Sources
a. It is not necessary to write quotes verbatim
b. Take extra care when you gather information

*WHAT MAKES A GOOD STORY?

Key questions in a business story are:

• “How many?”

• “How much?”

A business reporter must never hesitate to ask questions about money and spending and to dig for the answers if they
are not readily available.

SOURCES
 • WHO DO I NEED TO TALK TO AND WHO SHOULD BE IN MY CONTACTS BOOK? WHO DO I NEED TO TALK TO
AND WHO SHOULD BE IN MY CONTACTS BOOK?

• PR/Press Officers

• Finance People

• Industry People

• Politicians

• Civil Servants

*WHAT’S THE MYSTERY BEHIND ECONOMICS?

• Understanding Economics:

-know how the government raises money and its tax raising powers

-know where your country’s money comes from

• Be clear on the government’s overall economic policy

• The Levers the government can pull to steer economy are:

1. Fiscal Policy (taxation)

2. Monetary Policy

Grasp the main external influences affecting the economy:

-international prices of food, oil, and other commodities

-civil unrest or nearby

-effects severe weather conditions on people;

devastating influence on people

WHERE DOES MONEY COME FROM? HOW DOES THE GOVERNMENT RAISE MONEY TO SPEND?

 Direct taxation

 Indirect taxation

 Borrowing
  Selling

How is it sold?

1. Public Offerings

 Advantages: It prevents a single politically powerful investor from

snapping up all the shares.

2. Direct Sales

 Advantages: Competitive bidding is likely to bring the government

the most revenue from the sale.
 Disadvantages: Direct sales may be politically unpopular since
ordinary people have no opportunities to get a stake in the
company.

3. Mixed Sales

 Advantages: The big investors can carry out the changes needed to
make the company more efficient and profitable by the time it is
offered publicly.

4. Concessions

 Aims to give investors the freedom they need to make money

WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN NEXT?

(The government should be able to save the money it previously used to subsidize an inefficient company)

THINGS TO WATCH FOR:

-Large amounts of debt

-Competition policies

-Lay offs

-Shortages of skilled workers

-Benefits
*How to make the story look interesting.

1. AVOID THE PRESS RELEASE; DIG UP THE NEWS

2. MAKE NUMBERS UNDERSTANDABLE TO THE READER/VIEWER

*Taking down notes that make sense.

1. BEFORE THE INTERVIEW OR EVENT

a. Be prepared
b. Take a camera
c. Review previous notes
d. Plan questions
e. Start taking notes early

2. DURING THE INTERVIEW OR EVENT

a. Get the names right

b. Get contact information
c. Don't write everything down
d. Distinguish between information and quotes
e. Concentrate on the strong quotes
f. Slow the speaker down
g. Echo, echo, echo
h. Rephrase
i. Ask throwaway questions
j. Develop a shorthand
k. Ask for documentation
l. Take notes on the setting
m. Note your questions
n. Identify speakers
o. Take notes on senses
p. Note the emotions
q. Note what's off the record
r. Look up from your notebook
 3. AFTER THE INTERVIEW OR EVENT
a. Review your notes
b. Outline your notes
c. Write immediately
d. Ask, if you're not sure
e. Label and date your notebook

Tapes are helpful in these situations:

1. Interviews that you know could be risky. Use of the tape recorder might
head off claims that you misquoted the person.
2. Interviews with a person you know to be a fast talker.
3. When lengthy dialogue or a Q & A format will be important. Few reporters
can take accurate verbatim notes that long.
4. If you are inexperienced at taking notes and know your notes are not very
good, a tape recorder can help while you are gaining experience.

If you use a tape recorder:

- Take notes as if you weren't recording, because sometime the recorder will
fail, and at the worst possible time.
- Make sure you have plenty of tapes and fresh batteries.
- Choose a quiet setting. Background noise in a restaurant or music will
drown out the quote you're looking for on the tape.
- Ask if the person minds you recording. Sometimes a recorder makes a
character uneasy. Say that the recorder helps ensure your accuracy.
- Reset the counter to 0 before you start recording. Check the counter now
and then, writing the count in your notebook. Be sure to write down the
count especially after a key quote that you might want to use. That way you
can find quotes quickly.
- Label your tapes.

GDP

Is the total value of all goods and services produced in a country.

GNP

Is the value of a country’s goods and services, plus the income from investments abroad but minus income owed
to foreign investors.
 Consumer Prices

Issued by the Planning Ministry, the consumer price index (CPI), also called the cost of living index, tracks changes
in the cost of a basket of goods and services such as food, housing, transport and electrical power.

Inflation –- Deflation

Unemployment

The unemployment rate is the proportion of the workforce without a job.

The workforce shrinks as people retire or give up looking for work. The workforce expands as people start look for
work.

Example: Board Passers

If the rate of new hiring fails to keep pace with the expansion in the workforce, the unemployment rate rises.

Trade

The trade balance measures the flow of imports and exports of merchandise and services.