英语听力教程第二版 第四册-10

　　Unit 1O  Feeling the Financial market (Ⅱ)

Part Ⅰ Getting ready

The story of money is the story of how humans have learned to trade for the things they can't ?or don't want to ?make themselves. If you want an apple, you'll have to find someone who is willing to part with an apple in exchange for something else. That something else at one time might have been beads 1, shells, fish hooks, grain or any item once used as money.

A  The following words and phrases will appear in this unit. Listen carefully and study the definitions.

1. tariff 2: a tax collected by a government on goods imported or (less often) exported

2. foreign exchange: foreign money

3. short position: the amount of short-term securities or commodities owned by a market trader

4. indicator 3: index; a fact, quality, or situation that indicates something

5. endorse 4: support, give approval to

6. referendum: a direct vote by all the people to decide about something on which there is strong disagreement, instead of the government making the decision

7. circulation: the movement of something, such as news or money, from place to place or from person to person

8. denomination 5: unit in money; a standard of value

9. mint: a place where coins are officially made by the government

B  You are going to hear some sentences describing economic trends. While listening, please look at the graphs below and match Column A with Column B.

Column A      Column B

1            a

2            b

3            c

4            d

5            e

6            f

7            g

8            h

C  In this part you are going to hear eight short dialogues in which both the acronym 6 and the full name of some well-known organizations are mentioned. Listen carefully and fill in each blank with the corresponding full name of the organization.

1. EU: __________________________________________

2. OPEC: ________________________________________

3. WHO: _________________________________________

4. IMF: _________________________________________

5. NAFTA: _______________________________________

6. ASEAN: _______________________________________

7. UN: __________________________________________

8. GATT: ________________________________________

Part Ⅱ  The foreign exchange market

Modern information technology has led to news being transmitted worldwide quicker than ever before. Time differences around the world mean that financial news is being made twenty-four hours a day, and this serves as a basis for many of the business decisions that are made concerning international banking 7 and finance. What's more, techniques of analysis should also be applied 8 to information to determine its implication and to try to discern trends in the future.

A  In this section you are going to hear a news report on the international foreign exchange market. While listening for the first time, write down some key words in the notes column. After the second listening, complete the following two charts by filling in correct numbers.

Chart 1

1USD

London close of      New York close of    Tokyo close of business

business yesterday   business yesterday   today

2.63.70 DEM          ______________ DEM   ___________________ JPY

(German Mark)              (Japanese Yen)

Chart 2

London this morning

1 GBP    1 USD   1 USD    1 USD    1 USD    1 USD

(English

pound)

USD    DEM    CHF     FRF       NLGJPY

(Swiss   (France  (Dutch

franc)   franc)   guilder)

1.44.5   _____    2.16.6   _____    2.97.5   _____

B  Now try this: listen to a more authentic 9 version of the news report. After that some statements will be read to you. Decide whether they are true or false. Put "T" or "F" in the brackets.

1. (   )    2. (   )    3. (   )    4. (   )

Part Ⅲ  What is the euro?

What will it be like to use the euro every day? It'll be just like using your national currency now, except that the banknotes and coins will be different as from January 2002.

When you travel to the countries in the euro area at that time, there will be no more currency exchange ?which means no more exchange commission to be paid ?no more time spent on price comparisons, and no more time wasted shopping around for the best exchange rate.

A  The following passage is about the euro. While listening for the first time, add more key words in the left-hand column. After the second listening, answer the following questions.

Questions

1. What is the euro?

It is the EU's ______________________________

2. Why do people call it the euro instead of any other name? Because the name shares identity with __________, and it is different from any ___________ or ____________ national currency.

3. When will the monetary 10 union of the euro begin?

_______________________________________________

4. When will the euro notes and coins appear in the market?

_______________________________________________

5. How many different euro coins will be issued?

_______________________________________________

6. Which two countries have chosen not to join the euro zone up to now?

_______________________________________________

B  Now listen to the passage again and then do the multiple choice.

1. The euro is ratified 11 by _________.

a. the European Union's Heads of State or Government

b. the parliaments of the member states

c. the Treaty on European Union

d. the people in Europe

2. When the euro notes and coins start circulation, the old currency can still be used for _________.

a. one year

b. three months

c. two years

d. six months

3. How many different euro notes will be issued?

a. 5

b. 6

c. 7

d. 8

4. Euro notes will range from _________.

a. 5 to 500 euro

b. 1 to 200 euro

c. 1 to 100 euro

d. 5 to 200 euro

5. Euro coins will range from _________.

a. 1 cent to 1 euro

b. 2 cents to 2 euro

c. 1 cent to 2 euro

d. 5 cents to 1 euro

Part Ⅳ  More about the topic: The New Dollar Coin

According to 1995 estimates by the American Federal Reserve and the General Accounting 12 Office, if a coin replaced the dollar bill, the government would save US$ 2.28 billion in the first 5 years of implementation 13. Therefore, on December 1, 1997, President Clinton signed legislation calling for a new $1 coin, which will be placed into circulation during the year 2000.

A  In this part you are going to hear a passage on how the new American dollar coin compares to the quarter dollar and the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin. While listening for the first time, write down some key words in the notes column. After the second listening, complete the following chart by filling in the missing information.

DesignThe New Dollar Coin   The Quarter Dollar  The Susan B.

Anthony Dollar

Shape        ____________________   -  ______ with an

_________ inner

border

Color____________________   _________________  _______________

Edge        probably a ____ edge   _________________  _______________

Size        ________ in diameter     -          _____in diameter

Weight       ____________________   _________________  ________________

Thickness    ____________________   _________________  ________________

Composition     -               outer alloy:_____  outer alloy:____

copper 14 and ______  copper and _____

nickel core:_____  nickel core:____

B  Now try this: listen to a more authentic version of the passage.

part Ⅴ  Do you know ...?

The March of Dimes 16 is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects and infant mortality. Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes funds programs of research, community services, education, and advocacy to save babies.

You are going to hear an interesting short story about "the March of Dimes". While listening for the first time, write down some key words in the notes column. After the second listening, complete the following statements by filling in the missing information.

Statements:

1. At the age of _______, President Roosevelt suffered from polio and could never stand without the aid of ____________ and heavy leg __________.

2. In 1938, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt established a _________________ foundation to help polio ____________.

3. In order to _________ more money for the foundation, Eddie Cantor, one of the President's ___________ friends, asked every American to send __________ to the White House. The campaign was called

4. Sometimes as many as __________ letters containing dimes arrived each day in Washington.

5. After Franklin Roosevelt died in _________, the American Congress voted to put his ______________ on the U.S. coin-the dime 15.

Part Ⅵ  Reminder of key points in this unit

Verb & Verb Phrase  Noun & Noun Phrase Other

Part Ⅰ fund               budget          monetary

decline

collapse

subsidy

scheme

resolution

tariff

Part Ⅱ estimate       currency          durable

survey          in question

foreign exchange (Forex)

pfennig

covering

short position

spot price

indicator

guilder

Part Ⅲ adopt       euro          on behalf of

ratify       referendum  come into force

endorse       changeover  legal

mint               retailer           in circulation

commit       administration  keen

denomination

opt-out

Part Ⅳ authorize       mint          reeded

counterfeit       overview          metallic

bond               diameter

property

alloy

core

Part Ⅴ paralyze       dime

vaccine

polio

crutch

brace

campaign