Bank Base Rate
The Bank of England sets a basic rate of interest that determines the cost of borrowing money. Commercial banks use this as a reference point when setting their own base rates. Basically, when the base rate increases, the cost of borrowing increases, so mortgages and personal loans become more expensive. But at the same time, savers usually benefit from higher interest rates on their savings.
Bear Market
This is when share prices on the stock market are falling consistently over a long period of time, rather than just on the odd day here and there. Investors are often called 'bearish' if they think that prices are going to fall. They will usually sell shares to take profits before buying back at a later date when the share price is lower.
Beta
Beta is a statistical estimate of a fund's volatility by comparison to that of its benchmark, i.e. how sensitive the fund is to movements in the section of the market that comprises the benchmark. A fund with a Beta close to 1 means that the fund will move generally in line with the benchmark. Higher than 1, and the fund is more volatile than the benchmark, so that with a Beta of 1.5, say, the fund will be expected to rise or fall 1.5 points for every 1 point of benchmark movement.
If this Beta is an advantage in a rising market - a 15% gain for every 10% rise in the benchmark - obviously the converse is the case when falls are expected. This is when managers will look for Betas below 1, so that in a down market the fund will not perform as badly as its benchmark.
It is important to stress that Beta is just an estimate: however, the stronger the R-Squared correlation between fund and benchmark, the more reliable this estimate becomes.
Bid Price
The 'sell price'.
Bid-offer Spread
The difference between the price at which financial securities and units in a pooled fund can be sold (bid price) and bought (offer price). Compare with single price.
Bond
A bond is a debt security, issued by a government or a company, that creates an obligation to pay the bondholder regular interest (coupons) over the life of the bond and to repay the original value of the debt (principal) on a predetermined maturity date.
