Exercise 9. Look at these sayings about money

Look at these sayings about money. Match the sayings with the meanings.

1. Money makes the world go round a) Money is the worst thing in the world if

you value it too highly.

2. Money can’t buy you love. b) You really need money, it’s the most

important thing in the world.

3. The love of money is the root of all c) You have to work to get money.

evil.

4. Money doesn’t grow on trees. d) You don’t need money, but you do

need love.

It is interesting to know

& Reading

Read the text and answer the questions that follow.

What is barter?

You give me a ton of bananas. I give you six computers. This is called barter. We exchange goods, but not money. It's a simple principle. Many people think barter is used in primitive societies, or perhaps in countries with a very weak currency. They don't think barter companies can be successful businesses.

But here are some surprising facts and figures. In the US there are more than 400 barter companies. Many were set up more than 30 years ago. Barter is a $6 million industry in the US. In the UK, barter companies are doing extremely good business. One of them, the Barter Company, began trading only three years ago. It now has eleven offices in the UK and Europe and manages barter business for 595 companies.

Why is barter increasing? Who needs barter, when you've got cash, at least not enough cash, and not at the right times. But they may have goods and services that they can't sell. They put these into a barter pool. The barter pool gives them exchange credit. With this credit they can 'buy' other goods and services from the pool.

So barter today is not the simple cross-trade of bananas for computers that we began with. In fact, you 'sell' your bananas to the pool, which contains office furniture, office equipment, clothing, printing, technology and so on. You can 'buy' from the pool what you need. Perhaps it's not surprising that the most traded items are accommodation and travel. Successful barter companies offer a big choice and are global and international. They are a safe investment for the twenty-first century.

Answer the questions:

1. Barter is used

a) only in countries with weak currency

b) only in primitive societies

c) in any business environment

2. Barter today is

a) a direct exchange of goods

b) buying and selling from a pool of goods

c) buying and selling for cash

3. Barter trade in the UK is

a) increasing

b) decreasing