Unit One Business Letter-writing 外贸英文函电.ppt

1、Course Introduction & Chapter One Business Letter-writing,Course Introduction,Englishi Correspondence for International Trade is a course to help you get familiar with The layout Special terms & Expressions Certain writing techniques Used in different steps of international trade Unlike other theory

2、-oriented courses, this one focuses mainly on Practice!,Course Introduction,The steps of international trade include: Establish business relations Making enquires Making quotations Terms of payment Packing, insurance, shipment etc. And we are going to discuss these issues one by one.,Assessment,Fina

3、l examination:40% Mid -examination: 25% attendence10% participation 5% quizz (at least three) 20% Total 100%,Chapter OneBasic Knowledge of Business Letter-writing,Contents to cover,Essentials of business letter-writing 英文商务信函写作的要点 Proper layout of business letters 英文商务信函写作的格式 Envelope addressing 如何写

4、信封 The tendency of business letter-writing 英文商务信函写作的趋势 The way to master letter-writing skills 掌握写作的方法,1. Essentials of business letter-writing,Three Cs principle: Clearness (use simple, plain language, avoid wordy expressions which are likely to create misunderstanding) 简洁 Conciseness (write short

5、sentences and make sure one paragraph for each point ) 明了 Courtesy (reply a.s.a.p., & the “you attitude”) 注意交际礼节 And above all, “Good English” is essential!,2. Proper layout of business letters,Seven principle parts of a business letter: The letter head 信头 The date 日期 Inside name and address 信内名字地址

6、The salutation 称呼 Body of the Letter 内容 The complimentary close 信尾客套话 The signature 签名 And some other matters,1) The letter head,The letterhead is the name and address of the firm that writes the letter. It usually expresses a companys personality. It may contain the following parts: The full name o

7、f the company Address Contact details Company logo (optional) Icon of products (optional) References (optional),Business Machines Import & Export Corp. 2000 Central Street, Pudong, Shanghai 201206, China Tel: (021) 59000000 Fax: (021) 59000001,1) The letter head,e.g.,1) The letter head,e.g. Company

8、logo Reference No.,THE NILE TRADING CO.LTD. 161 Pyramid Street, Alexandria, Egypt TEL: (20-3) 4900000 FAX: (20-3)4900001 Our ref: GBD/ACM Your ref:,2) The date,The date line is generally typed two lines below the letter head, started from the left margin, or on the right hand side. Dont type the dat

9、e in figures, as it may cause confusion. e.g. 12/10/06 (confusing) In Britain this date would mean “12 October， 2006” But In U.S. and some other countries it would mean “10 December， 2006”,2) The date,Its better to type the date in full. Format: Day + Month + Year e.g. 12th October ，2006 (ordinal nu

10、mber 序数词) 12 October ，2006 (cardinal number 基数词) Or: Month + Day + Year e.g. March 1st, 2005 September 2, 2005,2) The date,Exercise: 1999年十月二十五日 25 October ，1999 or October 25, 1999 25th October, 1999 or October 25th, 1999 2007年三月八日 8 March， 2007 or March 8, 2007 8th March, 2007 or March 8th, 2007 1

11、998年六月一日 1st June ，1998 or June 1st, 1998 1 June, 1998 or June 1, 1998,3) Inside name and address,Format: Usually at the head of the letter, sometimes (in official correspondence) placed at the foot, in the bottom left-hand corner. It should be in line with the left-hand margin, blocked form is alwa

12、ys preferred. Usually two lines below the date.,3) Inside name and address,Information included: Full name of the recipient (if it is known and use the courtesy title such as: Mr. Mrs. Miss and Ms.) Business title of the recipient (if it is known) Name of the company Name and number of building, nam

13、e of street Name of town or city and Postal Code Name of country,sample:,Business Machines Import & Export Corp. 2000 Central Street, Pudong, Shanghai 201206, China Tel: (021) 59000000 Fax: (021) 59000001 October 15, 2005 Mr. Smith The Sales Manger Date Universal software, Inc. Inside name and addre

14、ss 2468 Oak Street San Francisco CA94105 U.S.A.,3) Inside name and address,The use of “Messrs” “Messrs” (abbr. from French Messieurs) is the plural form of Mr. It is used only for companies or firms, the name of which include a personal element (e.g. James, Smith Co.) e.g. Messrs. J. Harvey & Co. Me

15、ssrs. Macdonald & Evans,The use of “Messrs” It is not used in the following cases: When an individual is addressed: The chief accountant Edward Collins & Co., Ltd When the company name is impersonal: Cabinet Industrial Co. When a courtesy title is already included: Dr. H. Willis & Co. Ltd. When the

16、title begins with “The”: The Robinson Furniture Co.,4) The Salutation,The salutation is the greeting with which every letter begins. We can use: Dear Sir, Dear Sir or Madam, (avoid sexual discrimination) Dear Gentlemen / Sirs: (more American style) Dear Ladies or Gentlemen (recent tendency: no punct

17、uation marks),Pay attention to the difference in punctuation marks!,4) The Salutation,More examples of other courtesy titles: Dear Dr. Watson, Dear Prof. Young We Chinese tend to address people by their official or business title, for example: 张总 President Zhang 王主席 Chairman Wang,5) Body of the Lett

18、er,1.opening sentence: referring to previous correspondence. e.g. Many thanks for your letter about. 2.actual message of the letter: only one topic in each paragraph. 3.closing sentence: referring to future actions or plans. e.g. We would be grateful if you could send us this information as soon as

19、possible.,6) The complimentary close,Like the salutation, it is purely a matter of custom and a polite way of bringing a letter to a close. It is placed two lines below the final line of the body of the letter, against the left hand margin or on the center or to the right of the page (according to y

20、our firms preference).,6) The complimentary close,The most commonly used are: Yours faithfully, / Faithfully yours, (formal, standard practice in Britain, but old fashioned in U.S.) Yours sincerely, / Sincerely yours, (informal, usually between people known to each other, commonly used in U.S.) Your

21、s truly, / Truly yours, (informal, commonly used in U.S.) Best wishes,/ Best regards, (informal),7) The signature,Every business letter should be signed in ink. A typed signature alone is no good form. Format: Generally two lines below the complimentary close Placed either against the left-hand side

22、 margin, in the center or on the right, depending on where the close is placed.,7) The signature,Information included: Handwritten signature Typed signature Business title And sometimes department name,7) The signature,e.g. Sincerely yours, Frederick B. Prentice Assistant Manager Overseas Sales Depa

23、rtment,8) Other matters,References (参考号码) Sometimes letterhead provide spaces for reference. e.g. Or it may form part of the first paragraph. e.g.,Dear Sir: Thank you for your letter, reference ALM/PS, of 15th September.,8) Other matters,References (参考号码) Or the reference may be typed as a heading.

24、e.g. It helps the readers to quickly connect the letter to a particular issue or order.,Dear Sir: Your Ref: ALM/PS Thank you for your letter of 15th September.,8) Other matters,2. “For the attention of” (请呈交某某人) It is used when you want the letter to be handed to a particular person. e.g.,The Secret

25、ary The Ajax Electrical Co., Ltd Fernhall Drive REDBRIDGE, Essex IG4 5BN England For the attention of Mr. T. Waterhouse Dear Sir:,Two lines above the salutation, centered, underlined.,8) Other matters,Please read page 13 carefully to understand some other formalities in business writing. Enclosures

26、(附件) Carbon Copy (副本） Postscript (P.S.) (附言),2. Proper layout of business letters,The two most common styles of layout Full-block style (完全平头式）P2 Indented style (缩行式）P3,2. Proper layout of business letters,Indented style (缩行式) Traditional style All the paragraphs are indented six or even ten spaces Only the inside name and address is in block form The date line is usually on the right-hand side Complimentary close is placed in the center or close to the right of center(中间靠右),2. Proper layout of business letters,Block style （齐头式） Very modern All typing lines begin at the left-hand Sometimes