澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2013-07-24

 The share market is edging up in early trade after a relatively¹ flat finish on Wall Street. Right now, the ASX 200 is a quarter of a per cent higher. Taking a looking, overnight in the US, weaker than expected existing home sales and disappointing earnings² from Mc Donalds weighed on the market. Across the Atlantic, markets closed before the arrival of the royal baby. The FTSE  100 shed point-one per cent

 

The Australian dollar is buying close to 93 US cents now. 

 

And commodity prices jumped overnight.Golds saw its biggest jump in three months, while oil prices are also rising. 

 

An anti-coal activist³ has been given unconditional⁴ bail⁵ over charges of releasing a fake press statement that forced a trading halt on Whitehaven Coal. Jonathan Moylan issued the hoax⁶ release in January, saying the ANZ bank had withdrawn⁷ funding from Whitehaven Coal's Maules Creek⁸ Mine in northwestern New  South Wales. The release saw more than 300 million dollars wiped off the share price before it later recovered. Moylan appeared briefly⁹ in court today and the matter has been adjourned¹⁰ until September.

 

And the biggest story of the day. The royal baby boy isn't just a boon¹¹ to the royal family, but the UK economy as well, according to the UK's Centre for Retail¹² Research. The parties are expected to net 87 million pounds for retailers¹³. Toys and souvenirs 80 million pounds and media of the event will come in just under that, totalling 243 million pounds or nearly half a billion Australian dollars.

1 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

2 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• 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%。

3 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

4 unconditional   

adj.无条件的，无限制的，绝对的

参考例句：

• The victorious army demanded unconditional surrender.胜方要求敌人无条件投降。
• My love for all my children is unconditional.我对自己所有孩子的爱都是无条件的。

5 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

6 hoax   

v.欺骗，哄骗，愚弄；n.愚弄人，恶作剧

参考例句：

• They were the victims of a cruel hoax.他们是一个残忍恶作剧的受害者。
• They hoax him out of his money.他们骗去他的钱。

7 withdrawn   

vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出

参考例句：

• Our force has been withdrawn from the danger area.我们的军队已从危险地区撤出。
• All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。

8 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

9 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

10 adjourned   

（使）休会， （使）休庭( adjourn的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The court adjourned for lunch. 午餐时间法庭休庭。
• The trial was adjourned following the presentation of new evidence to the court. 新证据呈到庭上后，审讯就宣告暂停。

11 boon   

n.恩赐，恩物，恩惠

参考例句：

• A car is a real boon when you live in the country.在郊外居住，有辆汽车确实极为方便。
• These machines have proved a real boon to disabled people.事实证明这些机器让残疾人受益匪浅。

12 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

13 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。