英语听力：澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2013-10-02

 And the markets seem to be taking the US government shutdown in their stride. 

 

HSBC's chief economist¹ Paul Bloxham says there is optimism that things will get back to normal soon.

 

“I think the story here is essentially(口误）. The market is saying that the government's shutdown, ah, they think that the Republicans at some point will probably have to back down and the...the ..they will actually get through the debt ceiling issue. And of course, at the same time, the markets are probably thinking the Federal Reserve is unlikely to be tapering² any time soon. So I think that’s probably what’s lifted the market a little bit.”

 

Australia's Reserve Bank is now in wait-and-see mode after leaving the official interest rate steady at 2.5 per cent. The low rate is pushing up average capital city home prices, but analysts³ say other parts of the economy are still subdued⁴.

 

RBA governor Glen Steven says current monetary⁵ policy remains⁶ appropriate for now. 

 

Let’s go to the markets.

 

The Dow closed 62 points higher. The Nasdaq is 47 points up. The S&P 500 is 13 points up higher. London’s FTSE was steady at the close. 

 

To commodity prices. 

 

West Texas Crude is at 102 US dollars a barrel. Ta...Tapis Crude is at 116 US dollars a barrel. Gold is 1288 US dollars an ounce.

 

Australian dollar is buying 94 US cents, 69 Euro cents, and 58 pence sterling⁷.

1 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

2 tapering   

adj.尖端细的

参考例句：

• Interest in the scandal seems to be tapering off. 人们对那件丑闻的兴趣似乎越来越小了。
• Nonproductive expenditures keep tapering down. 非生产性开支一直在下降。

3 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• 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。

4 subdued   

adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He seemed a bit subdued to me. 我觉得他当时有点闷闷不乐。
• I felt strangely subdued when it was all over. 一切都结束的时候，我却有一种奇怪的压抑感。

5 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 sterling   

adj.英币的(纯粹的，货真价实的)；n.英国货币(英镑)

参考例句：

• Could you tell me the current rate for sterling, please?能否请您告诉我现行英国货币的兑换率？
• Sterling has recently been strong,which will help to abate inflationary pressures.英国货币最近非常坚挺，这有助于减轻通胀压力。