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Actual market behavior - Free Essay Example

An Option Pricing Model: Theory, Model Empirical Test Abstract A simple option pricing model based on correlation of underlying stock with actual market behavior as reflected by market index. The simplicity and ease of the model may appeal to the traders, operators and other market participants. Option prices produced by the proposed model are close to the actual price for all range of strike prices. The simplicity and precision of the proposed model are its main advantages over the existing models. Introduction Options belong to a class of instruments referred to as ‘Derivatives because they derive their value from an underlying commodity or financial assets. By definition, â€Å"derivative is a contract or an agreement for exchange of payments, whose value derives from the value of an underlying asset or underlying reference rates or indices†. Price of a derivative instrument is contingent on the value of its underlying asset. The underlying commodities and financial assets can range from products like wheat and cotton to precious items like gold, silver, petroleum and financial assets like stocks, bonds and currencies. Options have richer history. Forward contract dated back to Mesopotamian tablets (1750 B.C.). Organized exchanges began trading option on equities in 1973. An Option means a choice. An option in a financial market is created through a financial contract. This financial contract gives a right to its holder to enter into a trade at or before a future specifi ed date. The underlying assets on options include stocks, stock indices, foreign currencies, debt instruments, and commodities and futures contracts. These are called stock options, index options, commodity options and futures options. An option provides a downside protection against risk and also an upside benefit from movements in the underlying asset prices. An option is a contract in which the seller of the contract grants the buyer, the right to purchase from the seller a designated instrument or an asset a specific price which is agreed upon at the time of entering into contract. Option buyer has the right but not an obligation to buy or sell. If the writer gives the buyer of the option the right to purchase from him the underlying assets, it is call option. If the writer gives the buyer of the option the right to sell the underlying asset, the contract is termed as put option. At the time of introducing an option contract, the exchange specifies the period during which the option can be traded or exercised, the period is termed as Expiration period and date at which contract matures is Exercise date. The price at which the underlying asset may be bought or sold is exercise or strike price. Option premium or option price is the amount which the buyer of the option, whether it be a call or put has to pay to the option writer. Intrinsic value of an option is the value of the profits that are likely from the option. The difference between the option premium and intrinsic value is referred as time value. An option whose exercise price is equal to current spot price is said to be at-the-money. A call option is in-the-money when the strike price is below the current spot price of the underlying asset. A put option is in-the-money where the strike price is above the current spot price of the underlying asset. A call option is said to be out-of-the-money when the strike price is above the spot price of the underlying asset. Put option is said to be out-of- the money when the strike price is below the current spot price of the underlying asset. There are two kinds of options—American options and European options. American option can be exercised any time before its expiration date while the European can only be exercised on its expiration date. Trading and pricing of stock options have occupied dominant place in derivative market. Numerous pricing models have been developed, studied and tested. The Black-Scholes model is an option valuation model and it provides a closed form analytical expression for valuation of European style options. It is an option valuation model not a theorem. The model is developed based on assumptions and there are limitations with any such model. When the assumptions of the model are relaxed, discrepancy occurs. According to John C Hull â€Å"An option pricing model is no more than a tool used by traders for understanding the volatility environment and for pricing illiquid securities consistently w ith the market prices of actively traded securities. If traders stopped using Black-Scholes and switched to another plausible model—the prices quoted in the market would not change appreciably†. Review Of Literature Mandelbrot(1963) observed that the asset prices returns are highly leptokurtic. Numbers of studies were conducted to test the Black-Scholes model and other pricing models. Latane and Rendleman(1976) observed that out-of-money put options are generally overpriced in the market. Macbeth and Merville(1979) found that implied volatilities tended to be relatively high for in-the-money options and relatively low for the out-of-the-money options. A high implied volatility is indicative of a relatively high option price and low implied volatility is a low option price. Rubinstein(1985) in his study on trades reported on Chicago Board Option Exchange during the period 1976 to 1978 found that for out-of-the-money options, short maturity options had significantly higher implied volatilities than long maturity options. Study of Whaley(1986) showed that, overall the deviation between actual market prices and theoretical prices not significant. The model under prices in-the-money options. Some m odels assumed that volatility of stock price process is not constant but stochastic. Heston(1993) derived an option pricing formula when the log of underlying price distribution followed a Gamma process. Some option pricing models are based on series expansions of the underlying prices to obtain the model. Corrado and Su (1996) used a Gram-Charlier expansion of the normal distribution of returns. Popova and Ritchken (1998) created bounds on option prices when the underlying asset had the Paretian stable distribution. The study by Raj and Thurston(1998) on an intra day basis found that model under prices both calls and puts. Heston and Nandi (2000) developed a closed form option pricing formula based on a Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedastic (GARCH) process and found lower valuation errors. Savickas (2001) developed option pricing formula based on the Weibull distribution. Anurag Satish(2002), Gururaj and Chug(2002) Varma(2002), Narayana Rao(2003) Schenbagaraman(20 03), analyse the volatility and pricing efficiency of options in India. Varma(2003) studies the pricing of volatility in the Indian Index Options market found that volatility is severely misprices and the Indian option market has moved from naà ¯ve model to Black Scholes Model. Actual Stock price movement does not follow lognormal distribution. Ait-Sahalia and Duarte(2003) consider call price as a one dimensional function of the strike price alone, by using only options with equal time to maturity and assuming that interest rate and dividend yield are deterministic function of time. Yatchew and Hardle(2006) introduced non parametric least squares estimator. They assume the call price to be a function only depending of strike price. Gatheral(2006) defines profession of models someone who finds equations that fit prices in the market prices with minimal errors. Taleb and Goldstein(2007) show that most professional operators and fund managers use a mental measure of mean deviation as a substitute for variance. Need For And Objectives Of The Study For option traders theories should arise from practice. Option price as far as traders are concerned depends on market conditions thereby on stocks and indices. In effect market conditions and related parameters. Option traders normally do not depend on theories. Traders may take decisions based on market conditions, but avoid fragility of theories. Traders specializing in using the put call parity to convert puts into calls or calls into put termed as converters. Dealers who basically operated as market makers can able to operate and hedge most of their risk by hedging option with options or cover their position by off setting. Objectives Of The Study To develop a model for pricing of call option to traders, professional and other market participants as reflected by Market Factor Coefficient (). To derive the option pricing formula based on the underlying assumptions. To find the price of varied series of options of different stocks that constitutes NIFTY Index based on the proposed model. To compute the option price based on Black-Scholes Model and compare with proposed model and observed prices and its effectiveness. Operationally price is not valuation. Valuation requires theoretical frame work with its assumptions and the structure of a model. For traders a price means marked to buy or sell an option. Traders are engineers, whether rational or even not interested in any form of probabilistic rationality. Traders produce a price of an option compatible with the instruments in the market, other market parameters, with a holding time that is stochastic. The study seeks to contribute the existing literature in many w ays. Study is to examine the market factor, role of trader subsequently by pricing of option Research Methodology Assumptions In developing model there are some underlying assumptions: Value of the option depends on market conditions or market forces. Traders quote their price based on such market conditions. Call Option is function of market factor coefficient () as reflected by Exercise Price, Current Stock Price, time to maturity. Option price depends on current stock price, Exercise price, time to maturity, Market factor coefficient which in turn depends on market movement. Fund required for option transaction by long or short is on borrowed fund, rate of which is considered as rate equivalent to risk free interest rate. Since the trader has already decided to buy or sell option, it is assumed that rate has no impact on option price. As such no adjustment on this factor is required. Transaction cost in buying and selling the option do not be reflected in the price quoted by the trader. Traders normally do not exercise the option. Position is covered by offsetting or reverse transaction i.e., buy or sell. Corporate actions like dividend declaration, bonus issue, right issue, stock split, take over, acquisition, buyout, bankruptcy, window dressing are taken care of by the market thereby reflects in market and stock price reflects such changes or adjustment. It is assumed that no adjustment is required on this count. The option markets are efficient. Market factors reflect in fair value of the option. Price of option depends on market factor as reflected in correlation, current stock price, exercise price, time to maturity. Volatility of the underlying stock has considered in the market factor coefficient. Number of contracts traded by the trader depends of on availability of fund at his disposal. Options are tradable only for some strikes in the region. Traders may take decisions based on market conditions. Traders produce a price of an option compatible with market parameters. For determining the market factor coefficient, historical data is needed i n estimation procedure. The current market price of the stock depends on market conditions. Options are tradable only for some strikes in certain range (p,q) around the actual Spot Value St. In a bullish regime actual spot St will be near to q. In bearish regime it is closer to p. In practice the number of tradable options for given expiry could be small. Main Advantages Of The Proposed Model (1) Its simple form (2) Ease of the models implementation (3) Practical application. (4) Adjustment factor and volatility taken care in the market factor coefficient. Data The proposed model is to be tested using the actual values in option market. Using market data to test any asset pricing model involves. An asset is incorrectly priced by the model. Asset is incorrectly priced by market. Both the model and the market price the asset incorrectly. The proposed study, covers call options series written on select underlying stocks included in the Nifty index during the period of one year starting from six months prior to the approval of the research proposal. Data for the study is to be collected from Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) PROWESS database and website of the national stock exchange of India, www.nseindia.com. The date, time, contract month, option type, strike price is to be collected from the data source. Trading days is to be considered for analysis and computation and not calendar days. Historical data is used for calculating the market factor coefficient (). Each stock moves variedly depending on market conditio ns. For calculating the market factor coefficient () values prevailed prior to the day, the option trader marked the price (decided to buy or sell) is to be taken for stock price (kj) and market index (km). Closing price of stock (kj) and the closing price of market index (km) for 20 traded days (n) or any other traded days is to be considered for computation of the market factor coefficient . Exercise or strike price (X) of available series is taken for calculation and St as current stock price. Normal distribution of market factor coefficient from normal distribution table viz, N (). The proposed model is also to be compared with Black-Scholes model. Input parameters are required for estimating theoretical call price of Black-Scholes Model. Time to expiry is annualised by dividing the number of days left for the option to expire by the total number of calendar days. Dividend yield of nifty is to be taken 1.5% p.a Volatility per annum is taken as Volatility per trading day x Trading days is assumed to be 250 Data Analysis : The easiest way to measure accuracy of the formulae is to compare the calculated values with actual call option prices quoted in the market. The differences between actual and computed values are errors. The formula that produces lowest error can be considered better. In the study, errors are measured using following estimates: Mean Error (ME) It can be computed by adding all error values and dividing total error by the number of observations. Where Otp= the theoretical/predicted price of the otpion Oa= Actual price for observation. N= Number of observations. This measure is acceptable when all error data have the same sign (either all are positive or all are negative). A low value of the Mean Error may conceal forecasting inaccuracy due to offsetting effect of large positive and negative forecast errors and make this measure unacceptable. Percentage Mean Error (PME) Mean Absolute Error (MAE) The mean absolute error value is the average absolute error value. The closer this value is to zero, the better is the forecast. MAE is computed using the formula. The neutralization of positive error by negative errors can be avoided in Mean Absolute Error. Mean Squared Error (MSE) Mean Squared Error is computed as the average of the squared error values. This measure is very sensitive to large outlier. Commonly used error indicator in statistical fitting procedures. Mean Squared Error is computed as Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) It is square root value of mean squared error and similar to standard deviation. Thiels U Statistic Henri Thiel (1961) developed an inequality coefficient for measuring the degree to which one time series differs from another. Thiels U statistic is computed as under : Thiels inequality coefficient (Thiels U) Thiels U will equal 1 if a forecasting method is found no better than a naive forecast. If Thiels U is less than 1, it indicates that the method is superior to a naive forecast. A value close to zero indicates a good fit, whereas, value greater than, 1 indicates that the technique is actually worse than using a naive forecast. In comparing the two methods, the method that produces lower U statistic may be considered better than the other. Theils U statistics is independent of the scale of the variables; it is also constructed in such a way that it necessarily lies between zero and one, with zero indicating a perfect fit. A simple t-test is also to be carried out on the data set to test whether the model predicts correctly on average. The null hypothesis is t hat the mean pricing bias is zero. Limitations Of The Study For computing the market factor coefficient ()., market index data is considered. As there are many indices, the value (),changes from indices to indices. With the changes in the number of trading days, ‘n viz., 7 days, 14days, 21 days etc., considered for calculating ().value changes depending on trading days. References Black F(1975, â€Å"Fact and Fantasy in the Use of Options†, Financial Analysts Journal, Vol.31, pp.361-41. Black F and Scholes M S (1973), â€Å"The Pricing of Options and Corporate Liabilities†,. Journal of Political Economy, Vol.81, pp.637-654. Corrado, C.J., and Su. T (1996)Skewness and Kurtosis in SP 500 Index Returns Implied by Option Price,† Journal of Financial Research Vol. 19, pp. 175-192. Heston S (1993), â€Å"Invisible Parameters in Option Prices†, Journal of Finance, Vol.48, pp 933-947. Heston S and Nandi S (2000), â€Å"A Closed-Form GARCH Option Valuation Model†, Review of Financial Studies, Vol. 13, pp.585-625. Jarrow R and Rudd A(1982), â€Å"Approximate Option Valuation for Arbitrary Stochastic Processes†, Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 10, pp. 347-369. Latane H Rendlemen R J (1976), â€Å"Standard Deviations of Stock Price Ratios Implied in Option Prices†, Journal of Finance, Vol. 31, pp-369 -381. MacBeth J D and Merville L J (1979), â€Å"An Empirical Examination of the Black-Scholes Call Option Pricing Model†, Journal of Finance, Vol.34, pp. 1173-1186. Mandelbrot B B (1963), â€Å"The Variation of Certain Speculative Prices,† Journal of Business, Vol.36, pp. 394-419.† Popova I and Ritchken P (1998), â€Å"On Bounding Option Prices in Paretian Stable Markets†, Journal of Derivatives, Vol.5, pp.32-43. Raj M and Thurston, D C, (1998), â€Å"Transaction Data Examination of the Effectiveness of the Black-Scholes Model for Option Pricing Options on Nikkei Index Futures†, Journal of Financial and Strategic Decisions Vol.11, No.1 Rubinstein M(1995), As Simple as One, Two, Three†, Risk, Vol.8, pp.44-47 â€Å"Non-parametric Test of Alternative Option Pricing Models using all Reported trades and Quotes on the 30 Most Active CBOE Option Classes From August 23, 1976 Through August 31, 1973†, Journal of Finance, Vol.4 0, No.2, 445-480. Savickas. R (2001), â€Å"A simple option pricing formula† https://ssrn.com/abstract-265854 Thiel.H (1961), Economic Forecast and Policy, 2nd Revised Edition, North Holland Publishing Co., Amsterdam. Taleb.N. (2007): â€Å"Scale-Invariance in Practice: some questions and workable Patches†, working paper. Thorp. E.O. (2007): â€Å" Edward Thorp on Gambling and Trading†, in Hang (2007). Varma, V R (2003), â€Å"Mispricing of Volatility in the Indian Index Option Market†, working paper, IIM Ahmedabad. Whaley, R (1986), â€Å"Valuation of American future Options: Theory and Empirical Tests†, Journal of Finance, Vol.41, 127-150. REsearch Proposal to Ph. D IN FINANCIAL Management

How Does Global Trade Make Us More Interdependent Global

How does global trade make us more interdependent? Global trade makes us more interdependent by the impacts of finance, trade, investment, technology and migration. Also, economic, social and environmental impacts. They affect the formulation and implementation of policies at the national, regional and global levels. Among significant impacts is the reduction in the degree of national autonomy in policymaking and the resulting need to better harmonize national policy formulation with international obligations, commitments and compulsions. The realization of the MDG, Millennium Development Goals, is dependent on the strengthening of the global partnership for development. Buffeted by economic forces outside their control, smaller economies†¦show more content†¦This is an example of complicating the policy response. In recent years, a singular emphasis on targeting inflation has come to dominate debates on macroeconomic policy with strong calls to leave monetary and foreign ex change policies to an independent central bank. However, whatever the specific tools employed and regardless of who controls them, fighting inflation usually leads to higher unemployment and the risk of lower investment and growth in the medium term. Social interdependence is also increasing very rapidly. This aspect of interdependence takes many forms, including cultural interpenetration and integration (sometimes seen as a cultural homogenization that produces a counter trend of resurgent cultural nationalism), a possible trend of downward pressure on employment, wages and terms and conditions of work, and perhaps the partial development of a global civil society. Global cultural integration is most commonly associated with Hollywood films, world music and commercial advertising. Seven of the ten most popular television programs in South Africa are of U. S. origin. Global advertising budgets are now in the hundreds of billions of dollars annually, having increased sevenfold from 1950 to 1990 (Barber 62). Films or TV shows now has earned a greater export revenue for the United States economy than automobiles itself.Show MoreRelatedEssay on Globalisation of the Apple Corporation 1571 Words   |  7 PagesThe Apple Corporation Globalisation highlights a process in which national and more localised economies, societies, and cultures are become interconnected through the worldwide network of trade, communication, immigration and transportation. (Anon., 2014) This essay will assess to what extent the Global Corporation Apple meets Luke Martell’s 5 criteria of Globalization. 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Obesity Is More Common Than One May Expect - 868 Words

In America obesity is more common than one may expect. In America more than 78.6 million of adults are obese. The conditions of obesity include heart disease, stroke, type two diabetes and certain types of cancer. In America the estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the was $147 billion; the medical costs for people who are obese were $ 1,429 higher than those of normal weight. Throughout the United States, the nationality with the highest rate of obesity is African Americans at 47.8%, then followed by Hispanics at 42.5%, then Caucasians or Whites with 32..6%, and finally Asians with 10.8%. Obesity is higher among middle age adults than younger adults and adults over 60 and above. Those who have higher incomes are more likely to have obesity than those with low income (cdc.org). The reason why people are actually obese is by having too much body fat. To measure if a person is obese or not is by the most commonly used measure of weight status today the body mass index, or BMI . 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Chickens Essay Example For Students

Chickens Essay Questions1.Ethically as we Americans have defined is not on the minds of these executives of the cigarette firms. Our society has made it ethically and legally wrong to sell cigarettes to a minor. These companies located in the United States adhere to the laws and ethical issues within our borders, so what is the difference when they practice these unethical business transactions in smaller countries. These smaller, less developed countries do not have the technology and understanding to disallow the sale of cigarettes to minors. These gigantic tobacco companies should follow the same practices in smaller countries as they do in their home country the U.S. 2.Yes, I believe giving free sample packs of cigarettes to minors in foreign countries to be some form of bribery. You need to ask yourself why are the free samples being distributed? Merely to get younger generations hooked, so these companies have a long time consumer. Bribery doesnt always have to consist of money; this is a form of brainwashing in my opinion. By getting the younger, less intelligent population hooked early on cigarettes, these companies have opened up a new market to extend their own profits. Im sure the tobacco companies realize that a couple thousand free sample now is fine compared to the long term spending they will encounter from the individuals that get hooked. 3.No, they are not acting with social responsibility. Why or how could this be any bit of an ethical decision by the executives of the tobacco companies? These companies should believe and follow its moral set in the country it belongs and carry them into every business transaction that they make, whether it be in New York City or Mongolia. It is too bad that as a capitalistic society we lower ourselves below ethical lines just to earn a buck or two!4.Yes, I believe this problem can be addressed and solved through education. The United States has introduced the Foreign Corrupt Act Policy to disallow any bribery in foreign Markets whether or not the country allows it, it is merely enough that you belong to The U.S. that you follow their ethically values wherever your business may go. We need to educate these countries and their youth about the bad problems derived from smoking before they get hooked. We werent aware of the initial effects smoking had on us, and this allowed it to be s ocially acceptable. If we had been made aware of all the issues from the get go, maybe smoking would not be tolerated at all in our country. I feel this is the only way to help other countries fight the war against money hungry tobacco companies. This would be a hard task, but slowly and surely it can only help! SummaryThe main issue of this case is whether or not is an ethical business practice to sell cigarettes to minors in other foreign countries. The main blockade is all the money that the gigantic tobacco firms have compared to the very little money and knowledge the foreign countries have to fight against this issue. If you are to specifically look at Argentina and realize that they get Twenty-two percent of their taxes from cigarette revenue, now what country wants to give up that kind of money coming in?Solving this problem is going to be very costly and time consuming. Everyone, meaning lesser-developed countries, has to play catch to America. What we know and understand a bout cigarettes and the ways of the tobacco countries allow us to make decisions in an ethical manner, while these money hungry little countries will turn there heads to ensure money for their own economic growth.

Reality body soul free essay sample

Reality body soulIn analyzing this concept, I will start saying that reality can be modified very easily and it is important take it into account. In this case, it does not apply to the real body, but to the one represented on the canvas. Dorians pact transfers this reality very easy from the external body reality to the inward reality of the soul within the portrait. How sad it is! Murmured Dorian, with his eyes still fixed upon his own portrait. How sad it is. I shall grow old, and horrible, and dreadful. But this picture will always remain young. It will never be older than this particular day of June†¦ If it were the other way! If It were I who was to be always young, and the picture that was to grow old!. .. for that, I would give my soul for that! (PODG 28)According to this quote, this is the exact moment when Dorian basically invoke his soul and as a consequence he made his sole exist within the picture in stead of within his body. We will write a custom essay sample on Reality body soul or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Which meant that all of his sins from that moment on will be represented and manifested not in his body but in his soul which is within the picture. As a result, he sees the modifications occurring on his soul by contemplating the portrait from the outside. This modifications and alterations are due to the individuals actions and thoughts that occur in Dorians body. The Picture of Dorian Gray reflects then a division of the individual: On the one hand, the soul, inner reality which is subject to change and on the other hand, the body, outer reality which its change is suspended. The two realities cannot be separated, they are irrevocably connected and the change cannot be negated.Real-IdealOscar Wildes questioned the relationship between art and life which puts into doubt what it is real and what it is not real (ideal). The first issue that comes to mind is: Who is the true individual the painting or the man? Well, this is not very clear according to Wildes sense of self.In my opinion, the portrait represents the true, naked self. An idealized one represented before Lord Henrys influence. But eventually, Dorians self esteem will be truncated, he can never again adore his own particular beauty once he knows it is only a mask of his real ugliness represented on the canvas. His self claim is a way of postponing this mirror reality because at first when he made that pact he completely forgot his pain and suffering until he could see there the projection of his actions. The only way to calm down this inward turmoil is, as Dorian sees it, to pulverizes the only proof of his crimes, the portrait that once delighted him and now terrifies him. He needs to dispose of the past keeping in mind the end goal to adapt to the present, unburdened by this present existence of the spirit.The portrait mediates the transition to a subsistence clearly determined by sin, worry and his understanding of affection. Once the portrait is destroyed, what was hidden from the others becomes real, the hid inner reality involves be reflected within the outward reality of the body. Dorian grey returns to the human condition that reacts to the passage of your time and acknowledges death, whereas the portrait returns to its status of a piece of art.From the beginning of the novel, we can clearly see two things that are going to be key in this story: On the one hand how Basil Halward represesnts his obsessive fascination for Dorian into Dorians picture showing too much of himself and on the other hand how Lord Henry Wooton gives one of his very well-known sermons that will make Dorian a totally different person and that will change his lifes perspective (including the idea of beauty, youth, and other things important to Henry.)[†¦]†¦youth is one thing worth having†¦ you dont feel it now. Some day when you are old and wrinkled and ugly, when thought has seared your forehead with lines, and passion branded your lips with its hideous fires, you will feel it, you will feel it terribly†¦. Beauty is a form of Genius, is higher, indeed, than Genius, as it needs no explanation. It is of the great facts of he world, like sunlight, or springtime, or the reflection in dark waters of that silver shell we call the moon. It cannot be questioned You smile? Ah! When you have lost it you wont smile. As I said before this quote from the book tell us that from this moment on Dorian starts changing his mind and starts panicking about his own physical appearance and becoming jealous of his own picture that will always be fresh and young. Indeed, from the beginning of the book we can infer that Dorian is a very young boy which had a very difficult youth. His mother, Lady Margaret Devereux and Dorians father were gone early in his life. His dad was killed by a Belgian brute a few months after his marriage to Lady Margaret, who died soon after. This important years in his life lacked this unconditional love from his parents. So his personality was not strong enough at the end of his youth which will cause him serious trouble and unhappiness during thenovel when he becomes very influenced in the bad sense of the word by the Victorian society (Lord Henry Wooton). He is going to commit a lot of sins and bad actions that will end killing him, first psychologically but later on physically.

Definition and Tips for Business Writing Best Practices

Definition and Tips for Business Writing Best Practices Business writing is a  professional communication tool (also known as  business communication or  professional writing) corporations and other professional entities use to communicate with either an internal or external audience. Memorandums,  reports,  proposals,  emails, and a variety of other business-related written materials are all forms of business writing. Tips for Effective Business Writing The purpose of business writing is a transactional one. Of course, the content of business writing relates to a business entity but it also relates to a specific and purposeful transaction between the writer and his or her audience. According to Brant W. Knapp, author of A Project Managers Guide to Passing the Project Management Exam, the best business writing can be understood clearly when read quickly. The message should be well planned, simple, clear, and direct. Fast Facts: Basic Business Writing Goals To Convey Information: Forms of business communication, such as research reports or policy memos, are written to disseminate knowledge.Delivers News: Professional writing is often used to share recent events and accomplishments with both internal and external audiences. Call to Action: Business professionals use writing in an attempt to influence others for numerous reasons from selling merchandise to passing legislature.Explains or justifies an Action: Professional communication allows a business entity to explain their beliefs or to justify their actions. The following tips, adapted from Oxford Living Dictionaries,  form a good foundation for business writing best practices. Put your main points first. State exactly why youre writing the correspondence upfront. One exception to this rule is for sales letters. Reminding the recipient of a past meeting or a common connection you share is an acceptable way to open as it may influence the recipient to be more amenable to your intended aims.Use everyday words. Using words such as about rather than concerning, expect rather than anticipate, and part instead of component will make your writing less stilted.Know your audience. Unless its aimed at an industry-specific audience, dont fill your writing with lots of technical jargon. (Specifics can be attached separately.) Adjust your tone to suit your intended reader. For instance, a letter of complaint would have a far different tone than a letter of reference. Finally- this should go without saying- never use derogatory or sexist language, and actively work to  eliminate gender-biased language from any form of business communication.Use contractions when possib le. Business writing has undergone a shift from formal to a more accessible style so using we’re not we are, and we’ve not we have  is the way to go. Even so, you dont always have to use a contraction. A good rule of thumb is that if a contraction improves the sentence flow use it; if the sentence is more persuasive without it, use two words. Use active rather than passive verbs. Active verbs allow the reader to comprehend quickly and to understand more completely. For example, The decision has implemented to suspend production, leaves the interpretation of who made the decision to call it quits open. On the other hand, the meaning of, Weve decided to suspend production, is clear.Write tight. Again, using the example above, choosing the word decided rather than made the decision makes reading easier for the audience.Don’t be a slave to rules in every situation. Again, this is a case of knowing your audience. If your aim is to make your writing conversational, its fine to end a sentence with a preposition now and then, especially to improve flow and avoid awkward construction. That said, while many businesses have their own in-house style guides, elementary rules for style and grammar must be observed for your writing- and you- to be considered professional. Sloppy writing, poor word choices, or an unearned overly f amiliar attitude can come back to haunt you. Keep your font choices simple. Stick to a nice, clean type style such as Helvetica or Times New Roman and limit the number of fonts you use in correspondence. Your goal is something that legible and easy to read.Dont overuse visuals. According to sources at Technical Business Writing, Graphic displays should make up no more than 10 to 25 percent of the business writing. Too many graphics become confusing and often detract from the message you want to convey. A few, powerful, well-placed graphics will accomplish more to get your point across than something that looks like a bad attempt at scrapbooking.