Interest rates, equity indexes and the yield of a fixed-income security related jargon - What does BPS stands for?

Basis Point (BPS)
A unit that is equal to 1/100th of 1%, and is used to denote the change in a financial instrument. The basis point is commonly used for calculating changes in interest rates, equity indexes and the yield of a fixed-income security.

The relationship between percentage changes and basis points can be summarized as follows: 1% change = 100 basis points, and  0.01% = 1 basis point.

So, a bond whose yield increases from 5% to 5.5% is said to increase by 50 basis points; or interest rates that have risen 1% are said to have increased by 100 basis points.

Accounting, balance sheet, economic term - what do you mean by Base Period or reference period

Base Period
A particular time period for which data is gathered and used as a benchmark against which economic data from other periods is measured.

Also referred to as "reference period."

Think of this as a yardstick for economic data. For example, if a price index has a base year of 1990, current prices are being compared to prices in that time period.

Finance and stock trading jargon - What is a Barometer Stock or Bellwether Stock

Barometer Stock
A security whose price pattern is regarded as an indicator of the state of the overall market.
All bellwether stocks are also barometer stocks

Bellwether StockA stock that is believed to be a leading indicator of the direction of a sector, industry or market as a whole. Bellwether stocks are often used to determine the direction in which an industry or market is headed in the short term.

Bellwether stocks are typically large-cap equities that when performing well signal a bullish market but when performing poorly may signal a bearish market. Many different stocks may be classified as bellwethers; however, shipping and rail stocks have historically been particularly good bellwethers for the U.S. economy.

Phrases made simple - Explain what do you mean by 'Baptism by Fire' and 'Baptism of Fire', give relevant examples

Baptism by Fire
A phrase originating from Europe that describes an employee that is learning something the hard way, like being immersed in their field of employment. Baptism by fire has its roots in battle terminology, describing a soldier's first time in battle.

Baptism by fire is used when the best way for someone to be trained is for that person to experience the actual situations rather than to just study those situations. Jobs that require baptism by fire may include: police officers, firemen, military personnel, etc.

Baptism of Fire
A difficult situation that a company or individual experiences that will result in either success or failure. Examples include Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), a new CEO hired to manage a struggling company, and hostile takeover attempts. A baptism of fire will either weaken or strengthen the entity involved.