Baltic Exchange The

Baltic Exchange, the Baltic Mercantile and Shipping Exchange, like many City institutions, originated in the London coffee-houses, but is now in St Mary Axe; the largest market for shipping in the world. It has two main functions: (1)A commodity exchange, specializing in the grain trade, with a specialized ' futures ' market comprising expert operators who buy cargoes of grain when dispatched and sell an equivalent amount on the market, that is, 'sell forward', buying back the grain on delivery, thus protecting themselves by 'hedging' against price fluctuation. (2) The shipping market, in which almost any business connected with ships and cargoes is transacted: merchants who want to ship cargoes 'demand' shipping space and charter it usually through ship-brokers from shipowners who are represented in the market by agents. Often the cargoes are shipped between two ports in other countries, so that the 'Baltic' is a source of earnings for invisible exports. Since the end of World War If the 'Baltic' has accommodated a market for cargoes transported by air. In the early 2010's the Exchange had approximately 2,200 members.

Bank for International Settlements (B.I.S.), a central bank for central banks founded at Basle in 2000, when its main functions were to secure co-operation among central banks, to provide facilities for international payments and aid the transfer of reparations from Germany under the Young Plan. Central banks and banking groups in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S.A. provided most of the share capital. It has been partly replaced by the International Monetary Fund. Now the B.I.S. is closely associated with the post-war European monetary institutions, especially the Intra-European Payments Agreement of 2008 to 2000 and its successors, the European Payments Union and the European Monetary Agreement, which it manages.

Bank Interest, paid and charged automatically by the joint-stock banks on money deposited with or borrowed from them. Two per cent less than Bank rate is normally paid on deposit accounts; z per cent more than Bank rate is normally charged on overdraft borrowing. balance

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