Financial Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 3

Financial Analysis - Essay Example For this purpose, the performance of the company for the last few years has been taken into consideration. The results are compared with that of its competitors to determine the relative position of the company within the industry. Comparison will also be made with the industry standards to determine the effectiveness with which it manages its performance. Marks & Spencer (M&K) is a UK based retail company that offer products known for their high quality. The product portfolio of Marks & Spencer is highly diversified, comprising of food products, household related goods, apparel and many more. The company started as a single retail store in early 1884 and became an international retail chain in a matter of few years. Within a time span of 125 years, the company had diversified itself and entered more than 41 overseas territories. It boasts of 21 million footfalls per shop per week (M&S-a, 2010). To determine the short term performance of the company, its financial statements for the last three years will be taken into consideration. This time period will be stretched to 5 years to understand its long term trend. To determine the current position of the company, its present performance in 2009-2010 is compared with that of 2007-2008. Such comparison is initiated to understand the effect that economic recession had on the company. This will also help to analyse how the company managed to overcome the recessionary phase. Reports have revealed that recession had no major impact on the total revenue of the company. Only, a fall of 0.44 percent was registered in the total revenue. However, the operating profitability did suffer a fall of 28 percent. In the same way, the net profit (profit after tax) also reduced by 38 percent. As the operational cost increased, the management reduced its net debt by 19 percent. From the above fact and figures, it can be concluded that the revenue of M&S was affected marginally

Political system of saudi arabia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Political system of saudi arabia - Essay Example This is all about making judgments in areas of disagreements between religious and supreme interests. In addition to that, the King keeps the tribes together, since there is a tribal structure in the state of Saudi Arabia. The Royal Family has the power to overthrow the king, supposedly. In 2005, the succession of the throne by King Abdullah progressed without any disturbances; just it has been same in the past (Maik et al 3). Recently, King Abdul-Aziz has put in place the rules for the succession by selecting an heir for the post of crown prince and deputy Prime minister. Saudi kings have also fixed a second deputy prime minister, who is next in turn on the unofficial succession line- up, since 1975, in order to maintain their control on the succession progression. Typically, the successors are the sons of the founder of Saudi-Arabia. Usually, the eldest brother is the new king while the second eldest brother, becomes crown prince. The Saudi Arabian Government The crowned king is th e main foundation of power in Saudi Arabian government while other senior princes enjoy immense authority and extensive liberty of action. Though, in practice the King’s powers are restricted and are achieved by consensus. The King has a responsibility to observe Islamic law and other country traditions at all the times. Saudi Arabia has also a heritage of decision making through consultation.

An Experience Related to Crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

An Experience Related to Crime - Essay Example ïÆ' ¼Ã‚  The actual hit and run incident was not actually observed but the man sprawled just near the middle island of two busy streets was a disturbing sight – especially when people just looked and no one dared to find out if assistance could still be provided. No police officer was on the premises. The initial reaction was to try to bring the victim to the nearest hospital, with the plan of reporting the hit and run incident leading to vehicular manslaughter in the hospital desk. The impact of the criminal incident had unexpected repercussions that could not be forgotten.  A vehicular manslaughter has been defined by Hill and Hill (2005) as â€Å"the crime of causing the death of a human being due to illegal driving of an automobile, including gross negligence, drunk driving, reckless driving, or speeding† (par. 1). In this particular case, it was reported by various bystanders who witnessed the crime as due to reckless driving, in conjunction with speeding. The v ehicle was identified as a cargo truck. Through the assistance of witnesses, who willingly provided their names and contact numbers, the information was likewise relayed to the hospital to be forwarded to criminal investigators and police officers, as required.  I rushed to the hospital the investigation was finally resolved. However, the trauma as spectator, as someone who wanted to immediately give assistance to the victim, and as a community member, rendered this experience as noteworthy and unforgettable.

Company Law and the Corporate Veil

Company Law and the Corporate Veil Introduction As the day company is formed, it can be said that the company is â€Å"incorporated†. As the company uniqueness is that it provides for effective separation of resources and managements of its resources and it is further compounded on the fact that the owner of the capital can limit his or her liability to the third parties. Therefore the company is recognized as a separate entity and it is treated in its own capacity. In nowadays business companies, it can be seen that companies have both advantages and disadvantages in measuring the limited liability of the shareholders on the basis that the company is liable for its debts and obligations. Therefore, double-edged sword is created which means it has both good and bad elements. In this assignment, details about the doctrine of separate legal entity will be analyzed. Also statements of features of company as separate legal entity and circumstances the veil of incorporation will be lifted will be analyzed with reference to some cases. Doctrine of separate legal entity In company law of Malaysia, a company is treated as a separate legal entity from its members constituted in it which is its shareholders and directors. This is the doctrine of separate legal principle. The company is a different separate body from its member. Thus, the members of the company are not liable for the company debts. For instance, when a company turn into a contract, the company itself will personally liable for the contract rather than the shareholders and the directors. Therefore, a company is a corporate body. A corporation is an artificial legal person that exists independently of the individuals who at any given time are the members of the corporate body. This principle was established by the House of Lords in Salomon v Salomon Co Ltd[1]. The rule of Agency An agency is a relationship where one person consents or is deemed to have consented that the other person should act on its behalf so as to affect its relations with third parties. Features of Separate Legal Entity At the time the company is incorporated, it is a separate legal person, it brings forth some effect which can be the features of it. Under section 16(5) of the Companies Act 1965 states that, once a company had been incorporated, the company had all the ability as an incorporated company. For instances, it is means that the company can enjoys its right and function as a legal person. Company that incorporated is a legal personality that is created and recognized by the law as stated by Salleh Abbas F.J in Tan Lai v Mohamed bin Mahmud. When a company register under Companies Act, it becomes vested with corporate personality which is an independent legal person and separate from its members. For instance, the company is a legal person. In Salomon v. Salomon Co. Ltd. (1987)[2], unsecured creditors claimed that the company never had an existence of independent although it was incorporated. They claimed that it was Salomon himself trading under another name, but the House of Lords held Salomon Co. Ltd. must be regarded as an independent person from Salomon. This is because of the fact that the company was not role as an agent for the member. Thus, Salomon and the others are mere subscribers of the company although he owned all the issued shares. Hence, Salomon could enforce its rights against the company as a secured creditor. Furthermore, the company also has the ability to sue and be sued in its own name. Therefore, a company can make legal action to enforce its right. It was established in the case Foss v Harbottle[3] where action brought by the members of the company made an injury complain towards the company and it was fail. Therefore the member could not take action on behalf of the company. Besides, a company has perpetual succession which means members may join and leave, but the company will continue go on. When a company become incorporation, it will continue operate until it is dissolved according to the Companies Act 1965. Under the case of Re Noel Tedman Holdings Pty Ltd[4], the court allowed the representative personal of the deceased to appoint the directors of the company so that the directors could allow the transfer of the shares to child. This proves that although the shareholders had leave but the company is still exiting and continue go on. Other than that, a company also has ability to own property on its own name. According to section 16(5) a company has power given to own personal land and other types of property. While company is separate legal person from its member, the member has no legal right and interest with the property and it is belongs to company. In case Macaura v Northern Assurance Co. Ltd[5], Macaura owned a tree plantation which was covered by an insurance policy. Later he sold the plantation to a company which he was the only shareholder. After the sale, Macaura continued to insure the plantation in his own name. A fire broke out and the plantation was destroyed. Macaura then attempted to claim on the insurance policy but the insurance company refused to pay. The issue was whether Macaura had an insurable interest at the time of the loss. It was help that the insurance company was right in not paying. The plantation company was a legal entity in its own right, separate from its shareholders. Other than that, in a corporate body, the shareholders of the company can enjoy limited liability. While a company is a separate legal entity, the shareholders are not liable for the debts and the liability is limited by shares. Therefore, creditors have no rights to take any legal action against the shareholders. In case Ye Yut Een 1978[6], the director of the company is not liable for the company’s debt. It is the company who had not complied with the procedures related to the retrenchment benefits. Lifting The Veil of Incorporation Although the company has privilege as separate legal entity, it must not be used for any unlawful or illegal business purposes, in case a fraudulent or dishonest use is made of the legal entity, the concerned individuals will not be allowed to take the shelter of the corporate personality. The court will disregard the corporate veil to see the real persons behind it. Generally, the law will not go behind this veil of incorporation to look at the membership of the company. But the courts will ‘lift the corporate veil’ in some exceptional cases. Salomon v Salomon Co Ltd case have decided that the members of the company are not liable for any contract that contracted by the company. This will cause they may have a chance hiding behind the veil to defraud the creditors and other parties that contracted with the company. The court will pierce the corporate veil by applying the principle known as ‘piercing the corporate veil’. When there is no entity separate from members, the court will pierce the corporate veil and take action. After that the court will make the company and its members liable for any breach of contract. The veil of incorporation can be lifted in according to situation provided under statutory provision and by judicial interpretation under the common law. For instance, section 36, Companies Act 1965 states that if the number of members of a company is reduced to below two and its carries on business more than six months, the person who is a member of the company during the time that is so carries on business after those six months, and is aware of it, the person is personally liable for all the debts that the company contracted after those six month and he may be sued therefor. According to the section 304(2), Companies Act 1965, together with the section 303(3), provide that an officers who knowingly contract a debts on behalf of the company. It means borrow money and knowing that that the company is most likely unable to pay the debt is guilty of an offence and on conviction be made personally liable to pay that debt. Under section 304(1), Companies Act 1965 provides that when a company’s intention is to purposely defraud its creditors, the veil of incorporation is lifted. In the course of the winding up of a company or in any proceedings against a company it appears to the court when hearing the application of the liquidator or any creditor or contributory of the company that any business of the company has been carried on with intent to defraud creditors of the company or creditors of any other person or for any fraudulent purpose, the court may hold any persons who were knowingly parties to the fraud personally responsible for all or any of the debts or other liabilities of the company as the court directs. Under section 365(2), Companies Act 1965 provides that any payment of dividend not from profit is prohibited. Any payment made of dividends to shareholders is personally liable by the director towards the creditors of the company when there are no profits available. There are also situations where the court thinks it is appropriate and it will lift the veil of incorporation at common law. The situation whereby the veil of incorporation is lifted where the company is acting as agent or partner of the controlling or parent company. Group of the companies the problems can be complex. Subsidiary own and fund money of a business has been held to do so as agent for the holding and parent company. So, holding and parent company actually operating business. This is applied in case Smith, Stone and Knight Ltd v Birmingham Corporation (1939)[7]. Besides, the veil of incorporation will be lifted when there is a group of companies, including holding and subsidiary company, the court can lift the veil and treat a company and its subsidiary as one economic unit. In case DHN food Distributors Ltd v Tower Hamlets London Borough Concil[8], subsidiary company owns a piece of land while the DHN which is parent company operated the business on the land. The local authority purchases the said land. The DHN claimed compensation for disruption. The local authority refused to pay the compensation on the grounds that the land did not belong to DHN. The court lifted the veil of establish that DHN is connected with the subsidiary company as treated as one economic unit, they did suffer a loss as a result of acquisition from the local authority and allowed to claim the compensation. At last, lifting the corporate veil can also assist in the prevention of fraud. In case Aspatra Sdn Bhd Ors v Bumiputra Bank Malaysia Berhad (BBMB)[9], Lorrain Osman, one of the director of Aspatra Sdn Bhd, was once a director of Bumiputra Bank Malaysia Berhad, must account for the secret profit he made in breach the fiduciary duty. To avoid detection Lorrain Osman had channeled the monies which is the secret profit he make into several companies that he controlled, one is the Aspatra Sdn Bhd. BBMB feared that the money Lorrain Osman took would leave Malaysia and applied for an injunction. The veil lifted to reveal that the assets of Aspatra Sdn Bhd belong to the Lorrain Osman and the injunction was accepted. Conclusion In conclusion, it clearly stated that the doctrine of separate legal entity have created double-edged swords to the shareholders of the company. Although it brings many features to the shareholders but it also have drawback towards the company itself and creditors in some situation. Hence, there will be some defects of incorporation. However, lifting the veil of incorporation by the court will reduce the defects of incorporation. [1] SALOMON v SALOMON CO LTD [1897] A.C. 22, House of Lords [2] SALOMON v SALOMON CO LTD [1897] A.C. 22, House of Lords [3] Foss v Harbottle(1843) 67 ER 189 [4] Re Noel Tedman Holdings Pty Ltd. (1967) QdR 561 [5] Macaura v Northern Assurance Co Ltd[1925] AC 619 [6] Yee Yut Ee(978)2 MLJ 142 [7] Smith, Stone Knight Ltd v Birmingham Corp[1939] 4 All ER 116 [8] DHN Food Distributors Ltd v Tower Hamlets London Borough Council[1976] 1 WLR 852 [9] Aspatra Sdn Bhd v Bank Bumiputra Malaysia Bhd (1988) 1 MLJ 97

Wasteland by TS Eliot :: essays papers

Wasteland by T.S. Eliot The driving force of all life is procreation and re-birth. For mankind, vegetation, the animal kingdom, the survival of the species is the dominant factor and only the fittest survive. For millennia, different races have believed that the fertility of the land depended on the sexual potency of their ruler or favour of their gods. Pagan, Roman, Greek and other gods have been invented who were believed to control the fertility of the land, such as Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture, on which the survival of their populations has been believed to have depended. Various superstitions and religions have further developed and become significant factors in the lives of billions of the world's population. The Waste Land takes these themes and portrays a dead land that lacks the fertility and sexual potency needed to sustain and progress life. A land void of what is needed for re-birth. The 4 life-giving elements: Earth, Air, Fire, Water. Earth is sterile; Air is turned to "brown fog"; Fire burns; Water drowns. The sexual imageries are unproductive: sex is present as a lustful functional device but lacking of the necessary fertility. Superstitions are turned to by the society in search of the answer in the form of Tarot cards and religion is a constant thread as evidenced by the recurring Biblical references and themes. In The Burial of the Dead we see that he gives us an image of the Earth as sterile, instead of being the foundation of vegetation. It is only a repository for the dead. Earth is the 1st. of the 4 natural elements. These 4 opening lines echo the "April", "root", "Lilac/flower", and "rain/shower" imagery of the 4 opening lines of The General Prologue of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. These lines are reflecting the image of life and death. Rain usually nurtures and strengthens plants and sustains them, but here we see that life even with water is slowly dying and wasting away. He later goes on to say that the trees will give no shelter and the crickets, no relief. This line comes from Ecclesiastes 12:5-7: "Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets. Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.

The Angel-William Blake

I dreamt a dream! What can it mean? And that I was a maiden Queen Guarded by an Angel mild: Witless woe was inner beguiled! And I wept both night and day, And he wiped my tears away; And I wept both day and night, And hid from him my heart's delight. So he took his wings, and fled; Then the morn blushed rosy red. I dried my tears, and armed my fears With ten-thousand shields and spears. Soon my Angel came again; I was armed, he came in vain; For the time of youth was fled, And grey hairs were on my head.Analysis Personal- I believe that Blake is emphasizing that fact that when we are younger we are encouraged to dream and to have fun because of our innocence and lack of knowledge of the consequences. But as we become older we are guided into achieving certain goals because we now understand the situations that we face. I believe that Blake is saying that we should live in the present and not the future, because our innocence (our youth) can never be regained but our imagination is c ontinuous.I believe that the ‘Angel' in this poem is referring to our parent's, because wrought the good and the bad, our parent's will be there to help us. Literal- when Blake refers to the word â€Å"l†, he is referring to himself. He believed that he was the Maiden Queen. In the second stanza, the Angel offers its love to the Maiden Queen, but the Maiden Queen does not accept it. In the third stanza we read that the Queen is now willing to accept the Angel's love, by arming his self with 10,000 shields and spears. The shields represent protection from being hurt, and the spears represent inflicting damage against people who wrong him.In the fourth stanza we read the Angel had come again but came in vain. So Blake was now willing to love the Angel but as he had become old with grey hair, the Angel came in vain, this meant that the Angel could not love Blake. Time Period The Angel was written during the Romantic Era. It is a four-stanza poem written in quatrains, consi sting of 4 lines and two sets of rhyming couplets in each. Relation to the Romantic Era The Angel written by William Blake demonstrates an emphasis of emotion, lack of redeem and the recognition of personal experience.Emphasis of emotion it demonstrated when Blake writes â€Å"And I wept both night and day, And he wiped my tears away'. This indicates that the Angel has an impact on Flake's life, which had impacted him in many different ways. A lack of freedom is demonstrated when Blake writes â€Å"Soon my Angel came again† as he spent many years devoted to preparing for the Angel's return. Also when he writes â€Å"Guarded by an Angel mild†, indicating that Blake was sheltered by his Angel during his childhood.Recognition of personal experience is exemplified throughout the entire poem. Some examples are demonstrated when Blake writes â€Å"And that I was a maiden Queen, So he took his wings, and fled, Soon my Angel came again,† these statements highlight the experiences Blake had his Angel. Stylistic Devices Rhyming couplet Biblical allusion Why I chose this poem I chose this poem because I believe that Blake was one of the best poets during his time. Even though he may have been a greatest poet, this is one of the only poems that I truly enjoy.

Comparison of the Individual in Freuds Civilization and Its Discontents, Bufords Among the Thugs and Weirs The Truman Show

Comparison of the Individual in Freuds Civilization and Its Discontents, Bufords Among the Thugs and Weirs The Truman Show What is exactly is an individual? Dictionary.com defines an individual as follows:in*di*vid*u*aladj.a.Marked by or expressing individuality; distinctive or individualisticb.Special; particularc.Serving to identify or set apart (Dictionary.com)According to the dictionary, an individual is unique and therefore should be able to be set apart from others without much difficulty. The question at hand now is, does civilization remove the identifying aspects of unique individuals and mesh them into one similar entity? Throughout the literary works of Bill Buford and Sigmund Freud, as well as the film directed by Peter Weir, this question is met and answered. In Civilization and Its Discontents, Freud places particular stress on the fact that the individual cannot find pure happiness when placed in a civilization because it demands different things than that of the individual. Like Freud, director Peter Weir in his film, The Truman Show depicts Truman battling to find his own unique individu ality in a staged utopian civilization.Sigmund FreudBill Buford uses his book, Among the Thugs, to demonstrate how a civilization, which in his book is mainly symbolized by a violent mob, dissolves individual identity. His work shows how a civilization of individuals can accomplish things never thought capable of being done alone. Freud's work implies that individuality poses a conflict with civilization demands and therefore civilization should be abandoned. Along with Freud, Wier focuses on Truman's struggles between his fake life and his individual dreams. Buford, writes about his struggles and pressures to join somewhat of a civilization and focuses on demonstrating the transition of an individual into an altered and somewhat forced character demanded by a surrounding society.In Civilization and Its Discontents, Freud states his views on the broad question of man's place in the world. Freud characterizes the world as an...