voa标准英语2008年-Global Markets Continue Downward Spiral
时间：2019-01-13 作者：英语课 分类：VOA标准英语2008年(十一月)
An abandoned single family home offered in lender foreclosure public auction 4 is seen in Moreno Valley, California, 24 Oct 2008
Many economists 5 cite a rash of U.S. home foreclosures as the root cause of tight credit that has strangled economic growth in the United States and leading industrialized nations around the world. But despite a federal economic stimulus 6 package and a massive financial rescue package, U.S. home foreclosures continue unabated amid an economic downturn that appears to be worsening.
In addition to homeowners who have defaulted on their mortgages, hundreds of thousands of Americans are behind in their mortgage payments and are in danger of foreclosure.
The Federal Housing Administration, or FHA, is streamlining the process under which two mortgage giants can modify delinquent 7 loans to give borrowers more favorable terms in hopes of avoiding default. The agency took control of those mortgage firms, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, earlier this year.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director James Lockhart, attends a news conference, in Washington, 11 Nov 2008
"Foreclosures have increased almost 150 percent over the last two years," said FHA Chairman, James Lockhart. "Foreclosures hurt families, their neighbors, whole communities, and the overall housing market."
"We need to stop this downward spiral. Today, we are announcing a major program designed to greatly reduce preventable foreclosures with a simplified, streamlined loan modification 9 program to get struggling homeowners into mortgages that they can afford," he added.
Tuesday saw more U.S. companies announce disappointing earnings 10 and layoffs 11. On Monday, German-based shipper DHL announced a reduction in U.S. operations and a cut of about 9,500 American jobs. More than a million jobs have been lost in the United States during the last year, pushing the unemployment rate up a full point in the same time period.
Among the sectors 12 shedding jobs is the U.S. automobile 13 industry. Congress has already approved $25 billion in low-interest loans to America's top-three carmakers to help them retool 15 production and make more fuel-efficient vehicles. Aides close to President-elect Barack Obama are among those who say the industry needs another $25 billion in government aid to stave off bankruptcy 16.
Analyst 17 Peter Brown of the trade magazine Automotive News says the situation is dire 8 for General Motors and other U.S. carmakers.
"Right now the choices are pretty stark 18: bailout or failure," he said. "If GM [General Motors] fails, [then] all kinds of suppliers fail. The other two Detroit automakers would soon fail. There would be a large collapse of a very important part of the economy."
Carmakers are the largest component 20 of America's dwindling 21 manufacturing base.
Barack Obama (r) and George Bush in the Oval Office of the White House, 10 Nov 2008
President-elect Obama is reported to have pushed for a quick infusion 22 of government cash for automobile makers 14 when he met with President Bush at the White House on Monday.
For its part, the Bush administration has urged Congress to ratify 23 a free trade pact 24 between the United States and Colombia as a means to boost economic activity for both nations. So far, Congress has refused to consider the accord. The White House denied any attempt by Mr. Bush to link aid for carmakers to passage of the free trade deal.
The near-constant drumbeat of negative economic news continues to punish stock markets. Shares in Tokyo fell by three percent, while Hong Kong saw a plunge 25 of nearly five percent. Major European markets were down between three and six percent.
- Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
- The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。
- Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
- She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。
- The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
- The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。
- They've put the contents of their house up for auction.他们把房子里的东西全都拿去拍卖了。
- They bought a new minibus with the proceeds from the auction.他们用拍卖得来的钱买了一辆新面包车。
- The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
- Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
- Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。
- Most delinquent children have deprived backgrounds.多数少年犯都有未受教育的背景。
- He is delinquent in paying his rent.他拖欠房租。
- There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
- We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。
- The law,in its present form,is unjust;it needs modification.现行的法律是不公正的，它需要修改。
- The design requires considerable modification.这个设计需要作大的修改。
- That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
- Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。
- Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
- Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌
- Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
- He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
- The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。
- The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
- The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Each time the product changes,the machines have to be retooled.每次更换产品，就得重新装备机器。
- In the computer industry,engineers have to retool frequently.在电脑业中，工程师必须经常以新知识充实装备自己。
- You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
- His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。
- What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
- The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。
- The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
- He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。
- 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。
- Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
- Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。
- The number of wild animals on the earth is dwindling. 地球上野生动物的数量正日渐减少。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- He is struggling to come to terms with his dwindling authority. 他正努力适应自己权力被削弱这一局面。 来自辞典例句
- Old families need an infusion of new blood from time to time.古老的家族需要不时地注入新鲜血液。
- Careful observation of the infusion site is necessary.必须仔细观察输液部位。
- The heads of two governments met to ratify the peace treaty.两国政府首脑会晤批准和平条约。
- The agreement have to be ratify by the board.该协议必须由董事会批准。
- The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
- The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。