The Hindu Editorial (Trade puzzle) – Mar 19, 2024

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The Hindu Editorial (Trade puzzle) – Mar 19, 2024:

puzzle (noun) – mystery, paradox, enigma, conundrum, problem, riddle, question (mark).
uptick (noun) – a small increase or upward trend.
heartening (adjective) – encouraging, promising, hopeful, reassuring, comforting.
sustain (verb) – continue, carry on, keep up, keep going, maintain, prolong.
tumultuous (adjective) – stormy, turbulent, volatile; roller-coaster, out of control, confused, unrestrained.
jump (verb) – increase, upturn, upsurge, rise.
mark (verb) – indicate, signify, represent.
healthiest superlative adjective of healthy (adjective) – strong, robust, vigorous.
tally (noun) – total, count.
occasion (noun) – time.
mark (noun) – point, level, stage.
breach (verb) – break (through).
spurt (noun) – sudden increase, rise, surge.
amid (preposition) – in the middle of, surrounded by; during.
persistent (adjective) – continuous, constant, unending, unrelenting, unceasing.
disruption (noun) – disturbance, disarray, turmoil, obstruction, stoppage.
drought-hit (adjective) – affected badly by a dry spell.
drought (noun) – dry spell/period, lack of rain, shortage of water.
hit (verb) – affect badly, damage, harm, ruin.
throttle (verb) – stop, suppress, control, restrict, inhibit, suffocate, stifle.
spike (verb) – increase sharply.
consignment (noun ) – shipment, goods, cargo, load.
suggest (verb) – indicate, denote, point to, signify.
logistics (noun) – the process of coordinating and moving/transporting resources (people, materials, goods, inventory and equipment) from the point of origin to the point of destination.
key (adjective) – vital, important, essential, crucial.
simplistic (adjective) – oversimple, oversimplified, superficial, uncomplicated, facile.
plausible (adjective) – likely, possible, probable, imaginable, thinkable.
reflect (verb) – indicate, show, display, express, reveal.
probably (adverb) – likely, perhaps, maybe.
despatch (verb) – send, transmit, ship, freight.
backlogged (adjective) – accumulated, logjammed, piled-up, excess (pending things).
attain (verb) – achieve, reach, accomplish, obtain, get.
fruition (noun) – realization, achievement, accomplishment, completion.
at work (verb) – in the process; having a particular effect.
rebound (noun) – rally, upturn, recovery, improvement, resurgence (after decline).
World Trade Organization (WTO) (noun) – an intergovernmental organization that is concerned with the regulation of international trade between nations.
crawl (verb) – move, proceed, progress (very slowly).
reckoning (noun) – calculation, estimation, opinion, judgement, evaluation.
by someone’s reckoning (phrase) – according to someone’s calculations.
gauge (noun) – measure, indicator, index, barometer.
Goods Trade Barometer (noun) – The Goods Trade Barometer (developed by the WTO) is a composite indicator for world trade, providing real-time information on the trajectory of merchandise trade relative to recent trends. Barometer values greater than 100 are associated with above-trend trade volumes while barometer values less than 100 suggest that goods trade has either fallen below trend or will do so in the near future.
perk up (phrasal verb) – gain energy; cheer up, recover, rally, revive, encourage .
barometer (noun) – indicator, measure, gauge, index.
reading (noun) – analysis, account, explanation; indication, measurement.
exim (adjective) – export & import.
parameter (noun) – criterion, limit, variable.
marginally (adverb) – slightly, somewhat, to some degree.
slip (verb) – fall, sink, go down, decrease.
quarter (noun) – a period of three months (considered as one-fourth of a year).
owing to (phrase) – because of something; in view of, due to, as a result of, by/in virtue of.
base effect (noun) – it relates to inflation in the corresponding period of the previous year, if the inflation rate was too low in the corresponding period of the previous year, even a smaller rise in the Price Index will arithmetically give a high rate of inflation now.
derail (verb) – obstruct, impede, hinder, hamper, block, interrupt, thwart, stop, restrict.
conflict (noun) – war, warfare, armed conflict, military action, armed clash.
geopolitical (adjective) – relating to (the study of) the geographical factors (a country’s position on the earth, size, climate, and natural resources &, etc.) in world politics and inter-state relations.
tensions (noun) – strained relations, strain, unease.
upbeat (adjective) – optimistic, positive, hopeful.
surpass (verb) – exceed, be more than, be greater than, be better than, improve on.
merchandise (noun) – goods, commodities, produce, product.
lose sight of (phrase) – forget, neglect, ignore, disregard, overlook, pay no attention to, fail to consider, be lax about.
lingering (adjective) – lengthy, extended, continuing, unending, unrelenting, long-drawn-out, prolonged, persisting, protracted.
freight (noun) – goods or cargo (carried by ship, aircraft, train or truck).
outlier (noun) – a person/thing detached from the main group.
narrative (noun) – a representation of a particular situation; portrayal, account, description, statement.
so far (phrase) – until now, up to the present, up to this point.
plummet (verb) – decrease, decline rapidly, fall sharply, plunge, slump.
fractionally (adverb) – to a very small level/degree; slightly.
trade deficit (noun) – a trade deficit (a deficit in the balance of trade) occurs when the value of a country’s imports exceeds that of its exports. It is also called a trade gap.
inflow (noun) – a flow of a large amount of something to a particular place.
increasingly (adverb) – more and more, steadily more, continuously more, gradually more.
pricey adjective) – expensive, costly, exorbitant.
adversely (adverb) – unfavourably, disadvantageously, badly.
labour-intensive (adjective) – relating to the process where a larger portion of total costs is due to labour as compared with the portion for costs incurred in purchase, maintenance, and depreciation of capital equipment.