CIMA F3 Exam With Confidence Using Practice Dumps

Bond alone: pay 6% on $100m = 6m per year.

Add swap (receive 5% fixed, pay Libor + 1):

Net rate = 6% (bond) − 5% (received) + (Libor + 1%).

With Libor = 4% → 6 − 5 + (4 + 1) = 5% total.

Interest cost falls from 6% to 5% → 1% reduction.

Answer: B. Fall by 1%.

A – Quality of current management: affects risk of default and how well the business is run.

B – Current gearing ratio: shows how much existing leverage there is and the risk of over-gearing.

E – Interest cover on existing debt: key indicator of the firm’s ability to service interest payments.

EPS (C) and dividend cover (D) are more relevant to equity investors than to new long-term lenders.

Competition authorities focus primarily on market structure and competition, not on whether the bid is generous or on employment promises. Their concern is: Will this merger substantially lessen competition?

In food retailing, a key issue is local market concentration – for example, a single group owning too many supermarkets in particular towns or regions. A classic remedy is for the bidder to divest overlapping outlets so that effective competition remains.

B. Agreeing to dispose of specified outlets which overlap geographically directly addresses the competition authority’s main concern and is the standard structural remedy used in practice.

A (more cash) is irrelevant to competition issues.

C (job guarantees) is mainly a political/employment concern, not an antitrust one.

D (promise to pass on cost savings) is difficult to monitor and enforce and is normally viewed as less credible than structural remedies.

So the action most likely to persuade the competition authorities is B.