CNN Marketplace 2006-01-11

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Michelle Wright: If you are in the market for a GM car, now it's the time to head to the dealership¹. The company announced price cuts for 80% of its fleet. However, according to auto² industry analyst³ Mike Chan, those cuts weren't too surprising to some industry insiders.

Mike Chan: This is something that General Motors has, has announced in the past that they are going to actually lower...um...figure price in the cross board to combat incentive⁴. So what we are seeing right now is not a huge surprise to anyone in the industry.

Michelle Wright: The price cuts exclude the Sob⁵ Hummer and Saturn⁶ Models, meanwhile, at this year's Auto Show, Motor Trend Magazine's editor-in-chief Engels McChancy says, 'Automakers are introducing 36 new vehicles as the end of the SUV era is ushered⁷ in.'

Engels McChancy: What's interesting this year is the quality rather than the absolutely quantity. We're seeing some very significant new cars launched and some very interesting concept cars that are almost certain to be put into production.

Michelle Wright: Crossover vehicles which ride lower to the ground than sport utility vehicles, but offer similar interior comfort are expected to outsell SUVs in the US this year. More than a million in five months, a 21-year-old British college student is about to cross that milestone⁸. Alextuth, a million-dollar homepage.com is almost completely sold out, in August to launch the site where he sold individual pixels for a dollar shot, the last thousand are now being auctioned⁹ on eBay.

Michelle Wright: And it looks like we all continue to struggle with debt here in the US, reports our Ed McCharcy.

Ed McCharcy: The American Bank Association says the number of delinquencies on consumer debts stay near record levels, although decreasing slightly from July to September last year. Jim Chesson says even with the slight reduction, consumer card delinquencies are the third highest level on record.

Jim Chesson: There still are signs of financial stress though, and that show concerns that...

Ed McCharcy: The Fed's raised interest rates 13 times since June, 2004. It could raise rates another quarter point at the next meeting January 31st, Ed McCharcy, CNN.

Michelle Wright: With CNN Radio Marketplace, I'm Michelle Wright.

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WORDS AND EXPRESSIONS:
usher in: to cause something new to start, or to be at the start of something new
sold out: if a shop or store is sold out of a particular product, it has sold all of that product

1 dealership   

n.商品特许经销处

参考例句：

• The car dealership has a large inventory of used cars. 这家汽车经销商拥有数量庞大的二手车。
• A key to this effort is the experience in the dealership. 达到这个成果的关键是销售的体验。

2 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• 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。

3 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• 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。

4 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

5 sob   

n.空间轨道的轰炸机；呜咽，哭泣

参考例句：

• The child started to sob when he couldn't find his mother.孩子因找不到他妈妈哭了起来。
• The girl didn't answer,but continued to sob with her head on the table.那个女孩不回答，也不抬起头来。她只顾低声哭着。

6 Saturn   

n.农神，土星

参考例句：

• Astronomers used to ask why only Saturn has rings.天文学家们过去一直感到奇怪，为什么只有土星有光环。
• These comparisons suggested that Saturn is made of lighter materials.这些比较告诉我们，土星由较轻的物质构成。

7 ushered   

v.引，领，陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The secretary ushered me into his office. 秘书把我领进他的办公室。
• A round of parties ushered in the New Year. 一系列的晚会迎来了新年。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

9 auctioned   

v.拍卖( auction的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It was sad to see all grandmother's lovely things being auctioned off. 眼看着祖母那些可爱的东西全都被拍卖掉，心里真不好受。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder. 电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 bucks   

n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 )；钱；（英国十九世纪初的）花花公子；（用于某些表达方式）责任v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃

参考例句：

• They cost ten bucks. 这些值十元钱。
• They are hunting for bucks. 他们正在猎雄兔。 来自《简明英汉词典》