DIRECTORATE FOR QUALITY AND STANDARDS IN EDUCATION

Department of Curriculum Management

Educational Assessment Unit

Annual Examinations for Secondary Schools 2015

FORM 4 BUSINESS STUDIES TIME: 1h 30min

Name: _____________________________________ Class: _______________

FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

MARKS

SECTION A B C D1 D2 E TOTAL

MARKS 10 10 20 20 20 20 100

STUDENT’S
MARK

Business Studies – Form 4 Secondary – 2015 Page 1 of 7

SECTION A [10 marks]

Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words or terms from the list below. Each word can
only be used once.

capital co-operative EIRA footloose job production

nationalisation profit maximisation reliability stock exchange taxation

1. When choosing suppliers one of the criteria taken into consideration is is

______________________________.

2. An industry whose location does not depend on the market or resources is called a

______________________________ industry.

3. The manufacture of a custom-made kitchen is an example of

______________________________.

4. An organisation in which every member has one vote is a

______________________________.

5. When a government takes over firms from the private sector is called

______________________________.

6. One of the possible objectives of a business is ______________________________.

7. The organisation which helps people to buy and/or sell shares is the

______________________________.

8. ______________________________ is the main source of finance for the government.

9. The law which regulates employment in Malta is the

______________________________.

10. The purchase of machinery for use in a firm is an example of

______________________________ expenditure.

Page 2 of 7 Business Studies – Form 4 Secondary – 2015

SECTION B [10 marks]

ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS IN THIS SECTION

Tick () the correct answer in the space provided.

1. The maximum stock level refers to

(a) the maximum amount of stock that a firm can buy at one go
(b) the maximum amount of stock that can be issued at one go
(c) the maximum amount of stock that should be in the store

2. The fall in the average cost of production as the output of a firm increases is referred to
as
(a) internal economies of scale
(b) internal diseconomies of scale
(b) external economies of scale

3. A debenture is
(a) a form of long-term borrowing from a company
(b) a form of long-term lending to a company
(c) a form of long-term capital of a company

4. Two carpenters have joined their operations into one firm. This is a
(a) lateral merger
(b) vertical merger
(c) horizontal merger

5. The role of an accountant is to

(a) record transactions in the books of a firm
(b) manipulate the entries in the books of a firm
(c) keep track of the work in progress of a firm

6. Which of the following are examples of industrial actions?

(a) conciliation, sit-in, overtime ban
(b) collective bargaining, blacking, closed shop
(c) strike, work to rule, go slow

Business Studies – Form 4 Secondary – 2015 Page 3 of 7

 7. Just in time (JIT) refers to
(a) the ability of supplying goods to clients on the agreed date
(b) keeping stock levels of materials and components to a minimum
(c) being able to reach shipments just at the time of departure

8. A firm which has its head office in one country and branches in many other countries is a
(a) multinational
(b) franchise
(c) holding company

9. One of the roles of a trade union is

(a) to help workers to obtain unmerited privileges
(b) to obstruct the development planned by firms
(c) to protect the rights of workers at the place of work

10. Business organisation should

(a) indulge corrupt and illegal practices
(b) deal ethically with regulatory bodies
(c) evade tax payment as much as possible

Page 4 of 7 Business Studies – Form 4 Secondary – 2015

SECTION C [20 marks]

In the empty column provided, write down an appropriate term related to the statement
in the column on the left.

A digital pattern of lines and spaces used to

identify goods.

The department responsible to buy the

materials required by a firm.

A system where products are produced in

large quantities of identical units.

A committee elected by shareholders to decide

policy and to make important decisions about
the running of a company.

A type of tax charged on the income or wealth

of an individual or organization.

A taxation system where the tax paid as a

percentage of income increases as income
increases.

A document produced by limited liability

companies when trying to sell shares to the
public.

A group which tries to influence others to

bring change through peaceful methods.

A company buys the majority of the shares of

another company to take control of the other
company.

The resistance of a firm to change its location

after the original reasons to locate there, no
longer exist.

Business Studies – Form 4 Secondary – 2015 Page 5 of 7

SECTION D [40 marks]

ANSWER BOTH QUESTIONS IN THIS SECTION.

Answer these questions on the foolscaps provided. Each question carries 20 marks.

Question 1 – Read the following passage and then answer the questions that follow.

Mary and Alexia have opened a hat-making factory. They

employed thirty workers. They divided the workers into six
different lines. Each line does a particular task until the final
product is ready from the sixth and last line.

(a) Does the factory run by Mary and Alexia use direct production or indirect
production? Explain your answer. (4 marks)

(b) The fact that the factory produces hats is an example of specialization by
product or specialization by task? Explain your answer. (4 marks)

(c) What kind of specialization is adopted in the case of the workers? Explain
your answer. (4 marks)

(d) Explain two (2) advantages of division of labour. (4 marks)

(e) Explain two (2) disadvantages of division of labour. (4 marks)

Question 2 – Read the following passage and then answer the questions that follow.

Many countries get involved in international trade, importing

goods and services from abroad and selling goods and services to
foreign countries. Each country involved in international trade
may raise barriers to such trade and each year prepares a
balance of payments.

Page 6 of 7 Business Studies – Form 4 Secondary – 2015

(a) Define the following terms as used in international trade:
(i) Imports (2 marks)
(ii) Exports (2 marks)
(iii) Balance of payments (2 marks)

(b) Mention and explain the meaning of two (2) barriers to international trade. (4 marks)

(c) Explain in some detail two (2) disadvantages of barriers to international

trade. (4 marks)

(d) Explain in some detail two (2) problems that can be faced by a country
involved in international trade. (4 marks)

(e) Explain the difference between a free trade area and a customs union. (2 marks)

SECTION E [20 marks]

Choose ONE of the following topics and answer the questions about it.

1. (a) Explain the significance and importance of Ltd in the name of a

limited liability company. (4 marks)
(b) Explain in some detail the differences between ordinary shares and
preference shares. (8 marks)
(c) Explain in some detail the differences between a private limited
company and a public limited company. (4 marks)
(d) Explain in detail two (2) advantages that a public limited company
has in relation to a private limited company. (4 marks)

2. (a) Explain the term industrial relations. (2 marks)

(b) What is a trade union? (2 marks)
(c) Explain in some detail two (2) advantages for workers to join a trade
union. (4 marks)
(d) Explain in some detail two (2) advantages for employers of workers
joining a trade union. (4 marks)
(e) Explain in some detail two (2) negative aspects of a trade union. (4 marks)
(f) Explain in detail the difference between conciliation and arbitration
as used in industrial relations. (4 marks)

3. (a) Explain in some detail the difference between a central bank and a
commercial bank. (4 marks)
(b) Explain in some detail three (3) forms of internal sources of finance
for a firm. (6 marks)
(c) Explain in some detail three (3) forms of external sources of finance
for a firm. (6 marks)
(d) Explain in some detail the difference between a bank overdraft and a
bank loan. (4 marks)

Business Studies – Form 4 Secondary – 2015 Page 7 of 7