时间:2019-01-12 作者:英语课 分类:VOA标准英语2008年(九月)


英语课

As U.S. lawmakers grappled over a $700 billion dollar bank bailout plan, one of the nation's largest banks - Washington Mutual 1 Incorporated - collapsed 3 under the weight of its enormous bad bets on the U.S. mortgage market. From Washington, VOA's Purnell Murdock reports on what is seen as the largest bank failure in U.S. history.
 
Pedestrians 4 walk past Washington Mutual Inc. branch in downtown Seattle, Washington (file photo)


With financial markets reeling over the recent crisis on Wall Street, the collapse 2 of Seattle-based Washington Mutual could not have come at a worse time.


Federal regulators moved quickly, seizing the troubled mortgage lender late Thursday and selling the thrift's banking 5 assets to U.S. investment bank J.P. Morgan for nearly $2 billion.


The Federal Deposit Insurance Company, FDIC, insures Americans' bank deposits of up to $100,000. But it says because of the deal it will not have to use its assets to cover Washington Mutual's deposits.


The FDIC had already spent billions of dollars in its takeover of IndyMac, which collapsed in July. Some analysts 6 say a Washington Mutual failure could have used up half the money in the government insurance fund.


J.P. Morgan Chase said it plans to close less than 10 percent of the two companies' branches. The bank has not yet decided 7 which to close. Kelsey Wesley, a Washington Mutual employee says employees are nervous. But adds the company, commonly known as WaMu, has been good to them in the past.


"I'm not gonna say that is not gonna happen but no matter what WaMu has a really impressive severance 8 package and I think that's going to be carried on even if there is a merger," he said.


John Graybill, another Washington Mutual employee said he is optimistic.


"Of course we are going to have some uncertainties 9 and some questioning about what's going on. Have I been nervous? Sure. That's the nature of the whole beast," he said. "When a large company gets bought out you wonder about your job. Are heads gonna roll? You just don't know but we have faith in our bosses and the people upstairs."


FDIC Chairwoman Sheila Bair says this will be a seamless transition for the bank's customers. She says there will be no interruption in services and bankers can expect business as usual.


Washington Mutual has been saddled with billions of dollars of debt because it heavily invested in selling risky 10 subprime mortgages to customers who later defaulted on them.


This is J.P. Morgan's second purchase of a financial institution left vulnerable by the subprime mortgage crisis. It bought Bear Stearns for more than two-billion dollars earlier this year.


 



adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的
  • We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
  • Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。
vi.累倒;昏倒;倒塌;塌陷
  • The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
  • The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。
adj.倒塌的
  • Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
  • The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。
n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 )
  • Several pedestrians had come to grief on the icy pavement. 几个行人在结冰的人行道上滑倒了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Pedestrians keep to the sidewalk [footpath]! 行人走便道。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
n.银行业,银行学,金融业
  • John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
  • He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。
分析家,化验员( analyst的名词复数 )
  • City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
  • I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
n.离职金;切断
  • Those laid off received their regular checks,plus vacation and severance pay.那些被裁的人都收到他们应得的薪金,再加上假期和解职的酬金。Kirchofer was terminated,effective immediately--without severance or warning.科奇弗被解雇了,立刻生效--而且没有辞退费或者警告。
无把握( uncertainty的名词复数 ); 不确定; 变化不定; 无把握、不确定的事物
  • One of the uncertainties of military duty is that you never know when you might suddenly get posted away. 任军职不稳定的因素之一是你永远不知道什么时候会突然被派往它处。
  • Uncertainties affecting peace and development are on the rise. 影响和平与发展的不确定因素在增加。 来自汉英非文学 - 十六大报告
adj.有风险的,冒险的
  • It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险,但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
  • He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。
学英语单词
abbreviated argument
ability to harden
absorbed manufacturing expense
acid-fast nonphotochromogen
aerial transparency
an Antarctic expedition
Anamniota
aposteme
as-yet-unknowns
badly-designeds
badmouthed
ball socket adjuster
bopeep
C.I.G.S.
cheer
chlodwig
christmas pyramid
chromidium
cobblestone
compound tide
concurrently-shared resource
crushed zone
culpable homicide
cyclophorus formosaensis
daily traffic flow
dame barbara hepworths
desulfurases
developpes
Diemel
EABV
fiducial point
financial-service
fishing basket
floribundas
fourty equivalent unit
front vertex focal distance
fuel lifetime
General Foods Co.
genus cronartiums
global schema
gnawing at
golden clematiss
gotten cracking
grave's
half duty
hannemann
hide sorter
high volume account
homeappliance
homoveratric acid
humanas
husbands
hypabyssally
i-swowen
immunological unresponsiveness
index servo
integrative
inter-bourse
interabangs
joint cummulative distribution function
knob gobblers
Kyamepromazine
land use capability survey
Lutefium
marchia barclayana
mathematical modeling
metromalacia
mishent
movement picture
orthogonality conditions
painted sandgrouse
pallidoidosis
pandurata
pharmacons
pomatuming
profit ratio of paid-in capital
pseudomones sp.
pulsus
QBE
recovered solvent
roller comnveyor
rotation of the Earth
scolopendrium
side-draw
silvertipped
songfully
spallanzani
Still water runs deep
supported type abutment
sync non-linearity
thiomerin
Tukulan
two-liter
undefined
unexpended ammunition
Unified Threat Management
vacuum tube modulator
ventriculus mesencephalicus
waterslides
whatsernames
whrinny
Yalutsangpu River