Fixed Income Analyst Assessment

Which of the following is most likely to contribute negatively to the credit quality of an iron ore mining company?

• Purchase of a copper mine

• Compliance with green technologies

• Acquisition of a COVID vaccine producer

• Issuance of equity warrants

Which of the following characterises an oligopolistic market? Select all that apply.

• High profit margins

• Moderate profit margins

• High industry rivalry

• Low industry rivalry

• High growth rates

Which of the following is the best measure of gearing for the purpose of credit analysis?

• Debt-to-equity ratio

• Debt-to-total assets

• Total liabilities-to-total assets

• Current assets-to-current liabilities

Which of the following is the best profitability measure for the purpose of understanding operating success?

• EBITDA margin

• ROE

• Quick ratio

• Net profit margin

Which of the following are likely to indicate corporate governance problems? Select all that apply.

• A large number of non-independent directors

• The Chairman of the Board is not the Chief Executive Officer

• Each board member has remained in the board for 20 years

• 90% of board members are male

• The same auditor has remained in the company for 5 years

Which of the following variables is least likely to affect the direction of the interest rate outlook?

• GDP growth rate

• Debt-to-GDP ratio

• Inflation rate

• Exchange rate outlook

How would you interpret a 5% unemployment rate?

• Unemployment rose 5%

• 5 out of 100 persons in the population are jobless

• 5 out of 100 jobseekers in the population are jobless

• The number of Jobseekers declined by 5%

Expansionary fiscal policy is likely to cause which of the following? Select all that apply.

• Expansion in credit growth

• Expansion in bond supply

• Decline in interest rates

• Increase in foreign investor interest

• Increase in GDP growth rate

Which of the following is expected to cause an appreciation of the Malaysian ringgit? Select all that apply.

• An increase in net exports

• A decrease in the current account balance

• Tighter monetary policy relative to the US

• An increase in oil price

• An increase in credit growth

Which of the following could lead to a negative outlook on the sovereign rating of a country? Select all that apply

• Government instability

• A rise in tax collections

• A decline in GDP per capita

• Multiple bank runs