Step by Step 2000 第二册UNIT 11 News (II)

Part I Warming up

Tape-script:

A.

1. British Aerospace 1 plans to buy the part of General Electric Company of Britain that makes defense 2 electronics. The deal is worth $25,000,000,000.

2. Canada will hold a meeting of American leaders in April to discuss trade and economic issues. Canada now has a trade surplus of $161,000,000 a year with Central America.

3. Owners of MCI Communications have agreed to sell the company to the American communications company WorldCom. The price is $37,000,000,000 in stock. WorldCom defeated a 28,000,000,000-dollar offer by GGE. MCI also refused the British company Telecom's offer to unite the two companies by an agreement worth about $24,000,000,000.

4. President Clinton will release 30,000,000 barrels of oil from the United States emergency supply. The move is designed to ease heating oil shortage expected this year.

5. RANGOON -- The United Nations and the World Bank have offered Burma $1,000,000,000 in aid. A UN special diplomat 3 made the Offer to Burmese leaders last month.

6. Representatives of the six nations of the Gulf 4 Cooperation Council have agreed to common import taxes. Officials at the meeting in Riyad said representatives agreed to set the common tax on some goods at 5.5 %. The tax on other goods will be 7.5%.

7. The New York Stock Exchange halted trading early after suffering one of the worst market drops in history. Stock prices fell more than 550 points. That is a loss of more than 7%.

8.United States' Central Bank officials are reducing interest rates for the third time this year. The bank officials cut by 0.25% the rate that banks charge each other for short-term loans. That rate now will be 4.75%. The Central Bank made the same reduction in the rate it charges member banks for overnight loans. The rate now will be 4.5%.

B. Tapescript

1. Angry demonstrators are increasing their protests against

rising fuel prices. World oil prices have reached a ten-year

high of about $35 a barrel.

2. China has opened a meeting of African nations. Representatives of more than 40 African nations are attending the three day meeting in Beijing.

3. Dutch Prime Minister says the Czech Republic could become a member of the European Union by early 2003. The Prime Minister told reporters that the final date would be decided 5 by a conference of EU members.

4. Finance ministers and Central Bank governors of seven leading industrial nations are meeting in Washington. Officials from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the United States are attending the meeting.

5. Iran and Saudi Arabia say they will try to reduce the amount of oil now on the world market in an attempt to increase the low prices that are harming their economies.

6. Leaders of the Organization of Petroleum 6 Exporting Countries have urged rich countries to lower oil prices by cutting taxes on oil products.

7. Leaders of the ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations have promised to speed efforts to increase trade and to bring peace and security to the area. They made the statement at the end of their yearly meeting in Manila.

8. The Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board has told a senate committee that he will support policies that keep inflation low.

9. The United States and Japan have signed an agreement that will open Japanese ports to foreign companies.

10. And in Singapore, Prime Minister says his country's economy has increased almost 4 percent for the first half of 1999. Experts say the country has become a leading manufacturing and financial center.

Part II News items

A. Now listen to the first pair. Then summarize the news according to the cues given.

Event: the World Trade Organization(WTO)meeting

City: Seattle

Starting time: not clear

Finishing time: Friday.

Contentious 7 issues: agriculture trade barriers, environmental and

labor 8 concerns

Possible outcome: no agreement/ consensus 9 on plans for a new round of talks

Tapescript:

1. SEATTLE -- The World Trade Organization meeting is about to end. There is no sign of agreement on plans for another series of world trade talks. The meeting is to end later Friday. Trade negotiators still disagree about agriculture trade barriers, environmental and labor concerns and other issues. President Clinton supports demands by protesters to link the protection of worker rights to trade agreements. Some delegates from developing nations reject the idea as another kind of trade barrier. Many trade ministers at the WTO meeting say they do not think an agreement will be reached Friday.

2. The World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle enters its final day with delegates divided over several issues that could threaten future trade talks. Some trade ministers from the WTO say they will work hard to reach agreement on an agenda for a new round of talks but many delegates say they are not optimistic a consensus will be achieved. Among the contentious issues are agriculture trade barriers, antidumping rules, and environmental concerns.

B. Now listen to the second pair of news items. Complete the news summary and briefly 10 answer the questions you hear on the tape.

1. The news items talk about a trade agreement reached between Mexico and EU.

2.

a. more than one year

b. remove/95% +/trade barriers between EU and Mexico

c. more and better jobs/new possibilities/Mexican businesses

d. the U. S./Canada e. on July 1st, 2000

Tapescript:

I. Mexico has reached a major trade agreement with the European Union following more than a year of negotiations 11. Ell Trade Commissioner 12 Pascal Lamy spoke 13 to reporters in Brussels after completing talks with Mexican Trade Minister. Mr. Lamy says the agreement will remove more than 95 percent of the trade restrictions 14 between the European Union and Mexico. The agreement will give the Europeans the same right to Mexican markets that the United States and Canada now have. In Mexico City, President said the agreement will bring his country more and better jobs and create new possibilities for Mexican businesses.

2. Mexico and European Union have reached a landmark 15 free trade agreement after more than a year of negotiations. EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy tells reporters the deal is the most comprehensive ever negotiated by the Union and the first such agreement with Latin American partner. He made his comment Wednesday at a news conference in Brussels following talks with Mexican Trade Minister. Mr. Lamy says the accord will dismantle 16 more than 95 percent of the trade barriers between the European Union and Mexico. In Mexico City, President said the agreement will bring his country more and better jobs and will open new opportunities for Mexican businesses. The pact 17 will give the European Union the same duty-free access to Mexican markets now enjoyed by the United States and Canada under the North American Free Trade Agreement. EU governments must ratify 18 the agreement. It is expected to take effect on July 1st, the year 2000.

Questions:

a. How long did the negotiations last?

b. According to Mr. Lamy, what good will the agreement do to

the European Union?

c. According to Mexican President, what good will the agreement do to Mexico?

d. Which other countries enjoy the same right as the European

Union does?

e. When is the agreement expected to take effect?

C. Here is the final pair of news items. Listen carefully. Complete the news summary and answer the questions you hear on the tape.

1. The news items talk about the rising of the Nasdaq Composite

Index to a new record high.

2.

a. WHEN? on Wednesday

b. WHAT? above 4,000

c. HOW MUCH? 84%

d. WHAT? the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Standard & Poor’s 500 and the Russell 2000

e. WHAT? He doesn't think that the upswing will last for ever./He doesn't think the markets can keep rising at this rate.

f. WHO? telecommunications equipment and software computer companies

Tapescript:

1. A leading measure of the value of American technology stocks has risen to a new record high. The measure, known as the Nasdaq Composite Index, closed above 4,000 for the first time ever Wednesday. For the year, the Nasdaq Composite Index has risen 84 percent. This is the first time since April, 1998 that all four major measures of American stocks closed at new record highs.

2. US stocks soared to record highs and technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed above 4,000 for the first time ever Wednesday. This marks the first time since April 21st, 1998 that the four major US bench marks -- the Nasdaq, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Standard & Poor's 500 and the Russell 2000- closed at records on the same day. Prime market economist 19 P. Ellis says the upswing cannot last for ever.

"Whenever stock markets rise very, very rapidly, as has been the case of the Nasdaq, and to a lesser 20 degree in the Dow, you have to wonder whether there is really that much good news out there. Probably there is, but the markets cannot keep rising at this rate. The level itself is not dangerous, but we can't see this kind of return going on indefinitely. '

Telecommunications equipment and software computer companies led Wednesday's advance.

Questions:

a. When did this take place?

b. What did the Nasdaq Composite Index close at that day?

c. How much has the Nasdaq Composite Index risen for the year?

d. What are the other three major measures of American stocks?

e. What does the economist P. Ellis think of the U. S. stock markets?

f. Who led the advance on the stock markets that day?

Part III Nasdaq

Outline

I. Nasdaq -- the second largest stock market in the U. S.

A. its full name: the National Association of Securities Dealers 21 Automated 22 Quotation 23 system

B. its history

1. origin: in 1971

2. purpose in creating it: to centralize information about the trading of stocks not listed on NYSE or other exchanges

C. its scale today -- the world's largest growing stock market

1. the number of trading companies: 4,800

2. the number of computers linked to it: 500,000

II. The Nasdaq Composite Index -- one of the main measurements of the strength of the American economy

A. system used: a system of points

B. its difference from the Dow Jones Industrial Average

1. the Dow Jones Industrial Average: following the share prices of thirty leading companies in the U.S.

2. the Nasdaq Composite Index: including most of the country's new, high-technology and Internet companies

3. the recent changes in the value of stocks: much greater on the Nasdaq than on the Dow Jones

4. daily price changes: much larger on the Nasdaq reasons for it: a. different methods used to create each average b. difference in the kinds of companies included in each average

B. Tapescript:

Nasdaq is the second largest stock market in the United States, after the New York Stock Exchange. A stock is an ownership share in a business. Nasdaq stands for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation system. Nasdaq was the world's first completely computerized stock market. It began operations in 1971.

Nasdaq was created to centralize information about the trading of stocks not listed on the New York Stock Exchange or other exchanges. Today, Nasdaq is the world's largest growing stock market. The stocks of more than 4,800 companies trade on Nasdaq. More than 500,000 computers worldwide are linked to the Nasdaq system.

The Nasdaq Composite Index is one of the main measurements of the strength of the American economy. The index uses a system of points instead of dollars to measure the changes in the market value of all stocks that trade on Nasdaq. The number changes with each trade that is made. A final number is reported at the end of each trading day.

Another average, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, is the oldest and main stock index. The Dow Jones follows the share prices of thirty leading companies in the United States. Most stocks on the Dow Jones Index are established industrial companies. Nasdaq, however, includes most of the country's new, high-technology and Internet companies.

This year, the American stock market has sharply lost value after a record period of growth. The recent increases and decreases in the value of stocks have been much greater on the Nasdaq Index than on the Dow Jones.

Nasdaq also has experienced much larger daily price changes. This is partly due to the different methods used to create each average. But the main reason is the difference in the kinds of companies included in each average.

The greatest changes in prices have been in the stocks of technology and Internet companies. Experts believe that the stock market is experiencing a necessary correction. They believe the prices of many technology stocks became too high for their expected earnings 24.

Statements:

1. The New York Stock Exchange is the world's first completely computerized stock market.

2. The Nasdaq Composite Index changes constantly within a trading day.

3. The stocks included on the Dow Jones Index are mostly industrial companies.

4. This year, the stock prices in the United States have been going up.

5. Experts think that the prices of many technology stocks will be higher later.

Part IV "Bulls" and "bears"

A. Now you are going to hear a passage about some American expressions that are commonly based in business. Listen carefully and explain in note form the following words and expressions with the information you get from the story.

1. a stock exchange: noisy place/bell/ lighted messages / computers/ talk on the telephone/shout/run around

2. brokers 25: experts/salespeople 26/buy & sell shares of companies

3. stocks: shares

4. the big board: a list of stocks sold on the New York stock Exchange

5. a bear market: prices/go down

6. a bull market: prices/go up

7. a company that goes belly 27 up: a company that does not earn enough profit

8. a windfall: a sharp increase in the value of a stock/something wonderful that happens unexpectedly

B. Now Listen to the passage again. Then briefly answer the questions.

1. When and where did the word "board" with the meaning mentioned in the passage appear in written form? in 1837 in a newspaper in Illinois

2. What is the origin of "a bear market"?

old story/sold the skin of a bear/before caught it

3. What is the origin of "a bull market"?

a long connection/ bulls and bears/ in sports/ popular years ago/England

4. What is the phrase "go belly up" originally used to describe? fish/turn over on their backs/die

5. What is the story about the origin of the word "windfall"?

England/centuries ago/ poor people/ banned/cutting trees/ the wind blew down the tree/take for fuel

Tapescript

Today we tell about some American expressions that are commonly used in business.

Bell sound, lighted messages appear, men and women work at computers, they talk on the telephone, at times they shout and run around. This noisy place is a stock exchange. Here experts, salespeople called brokers buy and sell shares of companies. The shares are known as stocks. People who own stock in a company own part of that company. People pay brokers to buy and sell stocks for them. If a company earns money, its stock increases in value. If the company docs not earn money, the stock decreases in value. Brokers and investors 29 carefully watch for any changes on the big board. That is the name given to a list of stocks sold on the New York Stock Exchange. The first written use of the word with that meaning was in a newspaper in Illinois in 1837. It said, "The sales on the board were $1,700 in American gold." Investors and brokers watch the big board to see if the stock market is a bull market or a bear market. In a bear market, prices go down. In a bull market, prices go up. Investors in a bear market promise to sell a stock in the future at a set price, but the investor 28 does not own the stock yet. He or she waits to buy it when the price ducks. The meaning of a bear market is thought to come from an old story about a man who sold the skin of a bear before he caught the bear. An English dictionary of the 1600s said, "To sell a bear is to sell what one has not." Word experts dispute the beginning of the Word "bull" in the stock market. But some say it came from a long connection of the two animals bulls and bears in sports that were popular years ago in England. Investors are always concerned about the possibility of a company failing. In the modern world, a company that does not earn enough profit is said to go belly up. A company that goes belly up dies like a fish. Fish turn over on their backs when they die. So they're stomach or belly up. Stock market investors do not want that to happen to a company. They want a company whose stock they own to earn more profit than expected. This would sharply increase the value of the stock. Investors are hoping for a windfall. The word "windfall" comes from England of centuries ago. There poor people were banned from cutting trees in forests owned by rich landowners. But if the wind blew down a tree, the poor person could take the wood for fuel. So a windfall is something wonderful that happens unexpectedly.