When writing a business letter or email, it's important to have correct punctuation and capitalization, because this helps your writing look professional. In this lesson, we're going to review the rules for capitalization and punctuation marks in English. You may already know some of these rules, but it's good to review them, and you might learn something new because the rules may be different from those in your native language. Let's start with capitalization. Always capitalize the word I, and the first word of a sentence. For example, the budget for next year has been approved.

Always capitalize names of cities, states, and countries as well as their adjectives. Our company's headquarters are located in Paris, France. We are currently investing in Japanese technology. Also, capitalize names of languages. The contract was translated from Chinese into Italian and Russian. Always capitalize days of the week and months. I have a meeting next Thursday. Last plan a trip for November. Always capitalize names of companies, brands, and organizations. We received a shipment from Dow Chemical. I own two Toyota trucks. The World Trade Organization has created a new policy to help developing countries. We also capitalize names of official events. One representative from our company attended the International Conference on Information and Electronics Engineering. You'll notice that it's not necessary to capitalize the small connecting words like on or on, only the major words. That also applies to titles of books, magazines, and newspapers. For example, Dale Carnegie is the author of the best-selling book How to Win Friends and Influence People. My letter was published in the Wall Street Journal. Don't capitalize seasons, for example. We plan to launch a new product this summer. Also don't capitalize directions. This is the largest agricultural center in the north of Brazil. Our factory is located 50 kilometers west of Berlin. The only exception is if the word north, south, east, or west is part of the official name of a country, state, or city, such as South Africa or North Carolina.

Let's move on to punctuation. Periods, question marks, and exclamation points. You can end a sentence with a period for normal sentences. A question mark for questions. Transcription points are rarely used in business English. You'll generally find them in emails and phrases such as Have a Good Weekend, but they shouldn't be used too frequently. What about commas? Many students have difficulty knowing when and where to use commas in English sentences. The general rule is to use a comma where you would naturally make a small pause when speaking. However, this is not always easy for English learners to know, so here are some more specific guidelines. Use a comma to separate items in a list. For example, our company manufactures refrigerators, stoves, washing machines, and other appliances. Use a comma to separate two parts of a sentence connected by but and and so. For example, I worked all night, but I didn't finish the project. All new employees must complete the training program, and current employees must take a two-hour review course. The equipment failed, so we had to shut down the entire factory. We also use a comma after an introductory phrase, for example, by the beginning of next year, we hope to expand our operations into three new countries. Although she works rather slowly, the quality of her work is excellent. And we use a comma before and after extra information, which is contained in relative clauses. For example, our facilities, which are already the most advanced in the region, will be equipped with new machinery next year. I'll put you in touch with Keith Brown, who I met at a conference in Amsterdam. Use a comma after an if phrase if it begins the sentence. If you would like to schedule an appointment, please contact my assistant. If we had been more organized, this project would have been much easier. It's not necessary to use a comma when the if phrase does not begin the sentence. For example, please contact my assistant if you would like to schedule an appointment. This project would have been much easier if we had been more organized.

Let's look at semicolons and colons. Use a semicolon to separate two independent clauses. What is an independent clause? It means a phrase that could be a complete sentence by itself. Here's an example to help. Our office is closed tomorrow. We will reopen on Friday. Those are two complete sentences, so we could link them with a semicolon. Don't use a semicolon if one of the parts of the sentence could not be a complete sentence by itself. In this case, use a comma instead. For example, after completing your job application, please send it to human resources. After completing your job application, could not be a complete sentence by itself. So in this case, we use a comma, not a semicolon. Use a colon to introduce a list or examples after a complete sentence. There are three possible solutions to our financial problems, cutting back on spending, borrowing money, or increasing our profits. Do not use a colon if the part of the sentence before the list is not a complete sentence. So don't say we need to, colon, increase production and reduce waste. The correct way is simply we need to increase production and reduce waste. Or we need to do two things, colon, increase production and reduce waste. We must have a complete sentence before the colon.

Dashes and hyphens. Hyphens are used in the middle of certain words, such as ex-wife, all-inclusive, self-service, well-known, part-time job, and numbers like 21 and 38. Dashes are used to add an extra thought or extra information to a sentence, either in the middle or at the end. For example, our company offers a pleasant working environment and excellent benefits, as well as numerous career advancement opportunities. The New York City Cultural Tour, a popular option for all ages, includes a visit to Chinatown and lunch at a world-famous Italian restaurant. In many cases you can use commas or parentheses instead of dashes. Use an apostrophe in contractions, short forms. Cannot becomes can't. Do not becomes don't. I am becomes I'm. Would not becomes wouldn't. He is becomes he's, and they will becomes they'll. Although we avoid using contractions in formal business letters, they can be used in less formal business emails. We also use an apostrophe plus S in possessives like Janet's car and Nick's office. This is true even if the word or name ends in S, like my boss's phone number and Chris's wife. The exception is if the word is plural and ends in S, then add only the apostrophe but do not add another S. So we have one country's laws and five countries' laws. The manager's approval and the managers' approval, meaning approval of multiple managers.

That’s all for today’s business English listening content on letters, meetings, negotiations, and phone conversations, collected by Xiao Wu from Qicai.com. We hope you have gained some valuable insights!