VOA双语新闻 - 美三大汽车公司寻求获得联邦救助
时间：2019-02-14 作者：英语课 分类：VOA双语新闻 2008年12月
World markets were mostly higher, despite more discouraging U.S. economic news. Congress and the Bush administration are examining restructuring plans put forth 1 by failing American carmakers in hopes of securing emergency federal loans.
美国经济的负面消息不断传来。与此同时，美国国会和布什政府正在审查陷于困境的美国汽车制造商提交的改组计划，它们希望获得联邦紧急贷款。
The latest economic data shows further contraction 2 of America's service sector 3, the slashing 4 of 250,000 private-sector jobs in November, and reduced productivity gains in the United States, which is now believed to have been in a recession since the end of 2007.
最新的经济数据显示，美国服务业进一步收缩，11月份私人部门损失了25万份工作，美国的生产率增长出现下降。所有这些都进一步表明，美国经济处于衰退状态。
The deteriorating 5 economy has further strained America's already-struggling automobile 7 industry. The biggest of the top three U.S. carmakers, General Motors, says without immediate 8 government assistance, it could face bankruptcy 9 in coming weeks.
不断恶化的经济使已经在死亡线上挣扎的美国汽车工业雪上加霜。三大汽车公司中规模最大的通用汽车表示，如果没有政府的立即援助，它将在几个星期之内面临破产。
General Motors, Ford 10 and Chrysler are asking for a total of $34 billion in federal loans, and have pledged to cut costs and restructure operations to restore long-term viability 11.
通用、福特和克莱斯勒正在要求政府提供总数为340亿美元的联邦贷款。它们保证降低成本，改革经营管理，以恢复长期的生存能力。
The Bush administration, which has opposed extending federal assistance beyond a $25 billion government loan originally intended to foster the development of more fuel-efficient vehicles, is taking a wait-and-see approach to the carmakers' pleas for help.
布什政府反对在最初的250亿美元用于开发节能汽车的联邦贷款之外提供任何新的联邦援助，现在仍然对汽车制造商要求帮助采取观望态度。
"We want to make sure that a company is viable 12, so that if the American taxpayers 13 help the automakers now, that they do not have to help them again in six months because the plans did not work. We have said that we want to try to help the automakers. But we need to look at each of them and see if what we would be able to support could actually be a good investment fort the taxpayers, and we just do not know that yet," said White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.
白宫发言人佩里诺说：“我们想要确保一家公司能够独立生存。所以如果美国纳税人现在帮助汽车制造商，他们就不需要在6个月之内由于援助计划不生效而被迫继续施以援手。我们已经说过，我们希望试图帮助这些汽车公司，但是我们需要审查每一家公司，看看我们提供的帮助对于纳税人来说是不是一笔真正好的投资。我们现在还不能确信这一点。”
Auto 6 executives are to testify on Capitol Hill later this week for the second time in as many weeks. Tuesday, the carmakers reported sales in November that were down as much as 47 percent from a year ago.
今后两天，三大汽车公司的总裁们将在国会山接受几个星期以来的第二次质询。星期二，这些汽车公司报告了11月的销售情况，销售量比一年前下降了多达百分之47。
"The pace of deterioration 15 [of sales] has actually accelerated. Weakness in the first quarter [of 2008], more weakness in the second quarter, significantly more weakness in the third quarter, then October and November were the worst levels we have seen post-World War II," said General Motors Chief Operating Officer Fritz Henderson.
通用汽车公司的首席运营官弗里兹.亨德森说：“销售恶化的速度实际上正在加快。2008年第一季度销售量就已经下降，第二季度更加疲软，第三季度疲弱态势急剧恶化，然后10月和11月达到二战结束之后最差的水平。”
But industry analysts 17 say, even if car sales were better, U.S. manufacturers would still be losing money because the cost of producing each vehicle exceeds what they can charge to sell them.
但是产业界分析人士说，即使汽车销售量好转，美国汽车制造商还是会亏损，因为每辆车的生产成本都超过了它的销售价格。
Carmakers need to cut costs, and that means securing significant wage and benefits concessions 18 from the United Auto Workers union, according to analyst 16 Rebecca Lindland of the forecasting firm Global Insight.
美国经济咨询公司全球透视的分析人士莱拜卡.林德兰德说，汽车制造商需要削减成本，那就意味着要从工会组织汽车工业联合会那里获得工人工资和福利方面的巨大让步。
"This [bailout of the auto industry] is not going to really work without getting some kind of flexibility 19 from the UAW. These companies could go bankrupt, and then the union is powerless. So they have to give concessions," he said.
“如果不能从汽车工人联合会那里得到某种弹性让步，对汽车工业的救助就不会真正发挥作用。如果这些公司破产，工会就失去了地位。所以它们不得不做出让步。”
Democratic congressional leaders have said it would be unacceptable for the U.S. auto industry, the backbone 20 of American manufacturing, to fail. What is yet to be decided 21 is whether emergency government funds would come from a $700 billion financial rescue package Congress approved in October.
国会的民主党领导人表示，美国制造业的支柱汽车工业的倒闭是不能令人接受的。现在需要决定的是，政府的紧急救援资金是否出自国会10月份通过的7千亿美元的金融救助方案。
The Treasury 22 Department has spent nearly half of those funds to prop 23 up banks, mortgage and investment firms, and insurance companies.
财政部已经动用了这笔资金的将近一半来援助银行、房贷公司、投资机构和保险公司。
At a news conference, President-elect Barack Obama said he wants to see federal assistance go beyond rescuing financial corporations and provide relief to Americans who are in danger of losing their homes.
当选总统奥巴马在新闻发布会上说，他希望看到联邦救援不仅仅要帮助金融公司，而且也要惠及到面临失去住房危险的美国人。
"We have got to start helping 24 homeowners, in a serious way, to prevent foreclosures. The deteriorating assets in the financial markets are rooted in the deterioration of people being able to pay their mortgages and stay in their homes. And if we help Main Street, ultimately we are going to help Wall Street," he said.
“我们必须开始以十分严肃的方式来帮助房主，防止他们丧失房屋赎回权。金融市场资产不断贬值的根源在于人们缴纳房屋贷款、保住他们房屋的能力不断恶化。如果我们帮助了普通的美国人，最终我们也能够帮助华尔街。”
Mr. Obama spoke 14 after announcing the latest member of his economic team, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, who he nominated to be commerce secretary.
Major markets in Asia and Europe all closed moderately higher.
- The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
- He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
- The contraction of this muscle raises the lower arm.肌肉的收缩使前臂抬起。
- The forces of expansion are balanced by forces of contraction.扩张力和收缩力相互平衡。
- 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。
- Slashing is the first process in which liquid treatment is involved. 浆纱是液处理的第一过程。 来自辞典例句
- He stopped slashing his horse. 他住了手，不去鞭打他的马了。 来自辞典例句
- The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
- I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。
- Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
- The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。
- 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。
- His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
- We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。
- 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。
- They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
- If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。
- What is required to achieve or maintain such viability? 要达到或维持这种生存能力需要什么？
- Scientists are experimenting to find ways to ensure the viability of seeds for even longer periods of time. 正如我们所说，科学家正在试验努力寻找让种子的生命力更加延长的方法。
- The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
- The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。
- Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
- She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。
- They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
- The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
- Mental and physical deterioration both occur naturally with age. 随着年龄的增长，心智和体力自然衰退。
- The car's bodywork was already showing signs of deterioration. 这辆车的车身已经显示出了劣化迹象。
- 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。
- 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。
- The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
- The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。
- Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
- The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。
- The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
- The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。
- 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。
- The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
- This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。
- A worker put a prop against the wall of the tunnel to keep it from falling.一名工人用东西支撑住隧道壁好使它不会倒塌。
- The government does not intend to prop up declining industries.政府无意扶持不景气的企业。