Reading Comprehension for IBPS POs and Clerks 2019 : Practice Test & Tips

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The 'Reading Comprehension' item in IBPS bank PO and Clerks exams takes the lion's share in the total marks both in the Prelims and in the Mains. Only planned practice helps you in your speed in reading and accuracy in answering the questions.

Reading Comprehension

In Reading Comprehension A long passage of about 600 to 800 words with big and winding sentences will be given. You have to read it and answer TEN questions all in just 7 minutes. As an IBPS PO or Clerical aspirant, do you want to know How to get good marks in Reading Comprehension ?. Below are a few tips that may help.

Some tips to get good marks in Reading Comprehension in IBPS PO and Clerks

1. Read it quickly at the rate of 160 words per minute
2. Then read only questions with out options and this gives you a complete idea about the theme of the passage.
3. While reading, use your finger or a pen as ap ointer along the line of words. It improves your focus and understanding.
4. At home read aloud at least 5 passages per day. It improves your speed, vocabulary and understanding.
5. To improve your vocabulary, read magazines, news papers daily and use a standard dictionary.

Directions (1-10) : Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words / phrases are given in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions.

Passage

Over the past few days alone, the China's Central Bank has pumped extra cash into the financial system and cut interest rates. The aim is to FREE more cash for banks to lend and provide a boost for banks seeking to improve the return n their assets. The official data though suggested that bad loans make up only 1.4% of their balance sheets. How to explain the discrepancy ? One possible answer is that bad loans are a TAGGING indicator i.e., it is only after the economy has struggled for a while that borrowers began to suffer. Looked at this way, China is trying to anticipate problems keeping its banks in good health by sustaining economic growth of nearly 7% year on year. Another more worrying possibility is that bad loans are worse than office data indicate. This doesn't look to be the cause for China's biggest banks, which are managed conservatively and largely focus on the country's biggest value and quality borrowers. But there is MOUNTING evidence that when it comes to smaller banks, especially those yet to be listed on the stock market, bad loans piling up. That is important because enlisted lenders account for just over a third of the Chinese banking sector, making them as big as Japan's entire banking industry.

Although non-performing loans have edged up slowly, the increase in special-mention loans (a cateogyr that includes those over due but not yet classified as impaired loans) has been much bigger. Special-mention loans are about 2% at most of China's big listed banks, suggesting that such loans must be much higher at their smaller, unlisted peers. Many of these loans are simple bad debts which banks have not yet admitted to. Another troubling fact is that fifteen years ago, the government created asset management companies (often referred to as bad banks) to take on the non-performing loan of the lenders. After the initial transfer these companies had little to pay. But, last year, Cinda, the biggest of the bad banks, bought nearly 150 billion Yuan ($24 billion) of distressed assets, two thirds more than in 2013. These assets would have raised the banks bad loans ratio by a few tenths of a percentage point. Although such numbers do not seem very alarming, experts who reviewed last year's resutls for 158 banks, of which only 20 are listed found that "shadow loans". Loans recorded as investments which may be disguise for bad loans have grown to as much as 5.7 billion Yuan or 5% of the industry's assets. These are heavily concentrated on the balance sheets of smaller unlisted banks and at the very least, all this POINTS to a need for recapitalization of small banks.

1. Choose the word which is most nearly the SAME in meaning to the word, TAGGING as used in the passage.

1. delayed
2. breaking
3. stopping
4. protecting
5. tying

2. Choose the word which is OPPOSITE in meaning to the word, FREE as used in the passage.

1. expensive
2. secret
3. complimentary
4. restrict
5. charged

3. According to the passage, which of the following can be said about China's large banks ?
A) these are cautiously run
B) their clients are mainly high value
C) 2% of their loans have been classified as over due but not impaired

1. Only B
2. Only A
3. A and C
4. B and C
5. All

4. Which of the following is the central idea of the passage ?

1. Small banks must be permitted to be listed on the Stock Exchange
2. The Government should do away with the asset management companies
3. China's financial crisis is not as serious as it is made out to be
4. China's Central Bank has failed to predict and stop the decline of its banks
5. This is trouble brewing in China's small unlisted banks

5. Choose the word which is most nearly the SAME in meaning to the word, POINTS as used in the passage.

1. peaks
2. moments
3. arguments
4. indicates
5. plugs

6. Which of the following is true in the context of the passage ?

1. China has not implemented any resources to help its banking sector in recent times
2. Approximately 32% of China's banking sector unlisted
3. China's Stock Market has plummeted in recent times
4. Japan's banking industry is experiencing a boom like that of China
5. None

7. What does the example of Cinda convey ?

1. Many of the loans given by China's banks are in trouble
2. Many of such asset management companies are failing
3. China's economy is overly dependent on large banks
4. China is the ideal destination for small banks to flourish
5. Such companies have become obsolete

8. Chose the word which is OPPOSITE in meaning to the word, MOUNTING as used in the passage

1. melting
2. accumulating
3. removing
4. submerging
5. decreasing

9. Which of the following best describes experts' findings regarding 'shadow loans' ?

1. Shadow loans are steadily falling and are negligible at present
2. They are growing substantially and indicate the need for reform of small banks
3. Shadow loans are unfairly passed on to asset management companies
4. These loans are inconsequential to the health of banks
5. The findings are faulty as if only include a few listed banks

10. What is the author's view regarding small banks ?

1. These have a better loan portfolio than large banks
2. These are a good health helping to sustain economic growth of 7%
3. These should be merged with large banks to bail them out of trouble
4. Regulations governing them should be relaxed
5. Other reason's than those given as options here

If you have time, have a look at my previous article on some Important Tips for Reading Comprehension. Happy Reading :)

Shared by Ravi Chandra Kambhampati

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