The Wall Street Journal Weekly Quiz s19

The Wall Street Journal Education Program

Weekly Review & Quiz

Covering front-page articles from Feb 11-17, 2006

Answer Key Spring 2006 Issue #6

Developed by: Scott R. Homan Ph.D., Purdue University

1. Sen. Charles Schumer and Sen. Lindsey Graham may push next month for a Senate vote on their proposal to impose a _____ across-the-board tariff on Chinese goods if Beijing fails to do more to strengthen its currency.

a. 25.3%

b. 27.5% Correct

c. 29.3%

d. 32.1%

2. More than _____ of China's total exports – and______of its exports to the U.S. -- last year came from foreign companies or foreign joint ventures, according to China's General Administration of Customs.

a. 25% & 35%

b. 32% & 45%

c. 52% & 67%

d. 58% & 64% Correct

3. Massey Energy is the largest ______in West Virginia and the fourth largest producer in the country by revenue, behind # 1 Peabody Energy Corp of St. Louis.

a. wind farm

b. oil company

c. coal producer Correct

d. natural gas facility

4. One of West Virginia’s few big employers is Massey, which had revenue of $2.2 billion last year and employs about _____ West Virginians.

a. 4,300 Correct

b. 5,400

c. 6,200

d. 7,500

5. One 45-centimeter piece of needle lace takes KANYAKUMARI, India women about ______to create.

a. 20 minutes

b. 120 minutes

c. 20 hours

d. 200 hours Correct

6. Lace making is a good career because______.

a. it pays better than the cashew factories

b. it provides a way to earn money when the heavy rain prevents other family members from doing field work Correct

c. there is a huge market for hand-made lace

d. All of the above

7. The Commerce Department said yesterday that retail sales surged a seasonally adjusted ______in January from December, largely because of gift-card redemptions and abnormally mild winter weather.

a. 1.3%

b. 2.3% Correct

c. 3.3%

d. 4.3%

8. Coming after an earlier report that employers added nearly ______jobs in January and pushed the unemployment rate down to 4.7%, the retail-sales report was cheered as evidence that the economy has roared back from a fourth-quarter lull.

a. 100,000

b. 200,000 Correct

c. 2,000,000

d. 2,500,000

9. New Federal Reserve chairman, Ben Bernanke, differs from Allen Greenspan in what ways?

a. his succinct and often blunt answers to questions from members of the House Financial Services Committee

b. his refusal to comment on many politically contentious issues

c. he spoke opaquely about monetary policy

d. Both a & b Correct

10. Markets expect the Fed, at its next meeting on March 27 and March 28, to ______its short-term interest rate target, now 4.5%.

a. stabilize

b. double

c. lower

d. raise Correct

11. Late last year, the dissident financier, ______, started a proxy fight aimed at taking control of the world's biggest media company by revenue and market capitalization.

a. Peter Clapman

b. Dale Hanson

c. Alan Weber

d. Carl Icahn Correct

12. Time Warner's board of directors has ______members.

a. 4

b. 10

c. 14 Correct

d. 140

13. The challenge for top executives is persuading ambitious managers that their career success depends on collaboration – not______– with peers.

a. ambition

b. efficiency

c. productivity

d. competition Correct

14. The major differences between ads for the Super Bowl and the Olympic Games are:

a. length of the ad and style of humor used

b. the amount of money spent

c. use of surprise rather than emotional engagement

d. all of the above Correct

15. SEOs, which stands for "search engine optimizers", are paid to______, a maneuver that is likely to pull in more visitors and thus, in many cases, more business.

a. wear black hats

b. boost a site's ranking in search engines like Google Correct

c. organize silly contests

d. promote John Scott’s business

16. Radio Shack’s CEO David Edmonson is under investigation for what ethical violation?

a. misrepresenting his academic credentials Correct

b. infidelity with a co-worker

c. armed robbery

d. shoplifting batteries and an Ipod

17. In the last six months of 2005, MySpace's monthly traffic nearly doubled to ______users, making it the eighth-most-visited Web site in January, according to comScore Media Metrix.

a. 36,000

b. 360,000

c. 36,000,000 Correct

d. 3,600,000

18. Many states, including Florida, Illinois and Michigan, offer a prepaid version of the______college-savings plans.

a. Independent 529

b. 529 Correct

c. 401k

d. 409

19. The questioning of Enron's former investor-relations chief, Mark Koenig, grinds into a ______starting today.

a. second week

b. third week Correct

c. second month

d. third month

20. Two products that were helpful in boosting retail sales for the month of January:

a. snowboots and gasoline

b. designer clothing and Ipods

c. automobiles and holiday gift cards Correct

d. Starbucks coffee and CD’s

21. Lucent shareholders are voting on a proposal put forth by retirees to ____.

a. eliminate a benefit that paid up to a one-year salary to the spouse upon the death of a retired employee

b. increase the pay of the top brass executives

c. make 75% of executive stock grants dependent on the telecom-equipment maker's performance Correct

d. All of the above

22. It isn't stellar growth that should help Dell beat estimates when it reports results for its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Feb 3. It's analysts'______.

a. heightened expectations

b. dismal expectations

c. lowered expectations Correct

d. exaggerated expectations

23. Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires and CNBC estimate the headline PPI, which measures the prices businesses are paying for finished goods, such as office furniture, ______in January from its December level.

a. rose 1.3%

b. rose 0.3% Correct

c. fell 0.3%

d. fell 1.3%

24. Even though employees with 401k plans are protected because they actually own their assets, problems can arise when _____.

a. the employee’s plan administrator cannot be located

b the company declares a bankruptcy

c. the death of the owner of a “mom & pop” operation

d. all of the above Correct

25. Good strategies for discussing financial issues with family include:

a. shouting at the parents, 'You're going to die!’

b. lectures on "You don't know how good you have it"

c. ask your parents whether there's anything you can do to help them maintain their independence Correct

d. plunge right in, asking how much they are worth and whether they have a will.

26. Asked what elements of compensation they value most, college seniors gave health insurance and retirement plans higher priority than______.

a. vacations

b. bonuses

c. stock options

d. All of the above Correct