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　　U.S. markets posted early gains after modestly encouraging signs concerning employment and retail¹ sales.
星期四公布的一些经济数据还算不错，美国金融市场受到鼓舞而止跌反弹。
The U.S. Labor² Department says 24,000 fewer Americans filed initial jobless claims last week than the previous week. The number of newly-idled workers, 601,000, was below most analysts³' expectations. The four-week average of initial unemployment claims is also down from a month ago, although well above the levels seen in May and June of last year.
美国劳动部说，上周和之前一周相比，初次申请失业补助的人数减少了2万4千人。新增失业人数为60万1千人，低于绝大多数分析人士的预期。首次申请失业补贴的4周平均人数也比上个月有所下降，尽管仍然高于去年5、6月份的同期水平。
The number of Americans claiming unemployment benefits now exceeds 6.8 million, the highest number ever recorded.
现在，申请失业救济金的总人数超过了680万，达到历史最高水平。
PNC Financial Services Group chief-economist Stuart Hoffman says the U.S. labor market continues to deteriorate⁴, but at a slower pace than a few months ago:
PNC金融服务集团的首席经济学家斯徒亚特.霍夫曼说，美国劳动力市场仍在继续恶化，只是和几个月前相比，恶化的速度变缓而已。
"I do not think it means we are going to see job growth in June or July," said Stuart Hoffman. "I think it means the rate of decline in the economy, which during late last year and the first quarter of this year was like a free-fall, is definitely slowing down.
他说：“我不认为这表示我们在6月和7月可以看到工作机会增加。我认为，这表示，经过去年年底和今年第一季度自由落体式的经济下滑后，现在经济衰退的速度绝对是放慢了。”
Meanwhile, U.S. retail sales rose 0.5 percent in May, fueled by increasing traffic at auto⁵ dealerships and gasoline stations. It was the first retail sales boost in the last three months. The Commerce Department also reports businesses continued to cut inventories⁶ for an eighth consecutive⁷ month to match soft demand for products.
同时，由于汽车和汽油的销量增加，美国5月份的零售额提高了0.5个百分点。这是过去3个月以来，零售业首次迎来增长。商业部还报告说，商业部门连续第8个月削减存货来应对疲软的市场需求。
No one is predicting an immediate⁸ end to America's protracted⁹ recession, which began in late 2007. But PNC's Stuart Hoffman thinks a turnaround could occur by the end of 2009.
没人会预测美国这次从2007年底开始的漫长的经济衰退能很快结束。但是霍夫曼说，转机将出现在2009年底。
"We are looking at the end of this recession, probably, by the fourth quarter of this year," he said. "So, to me, these [positive indicators] are the signs that say the end [of the downturn] is near."
他说：“我们认为，衰退可能会在今年第4季度停止。所以，我认为，那些积极的迹象表明，转机越来越近了。”
Last week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told reporters an eventual¹⁰ economic recovery will be slow to build momentum¹¹, with the likelihood that job losses will linger after the economy begins to grow.
上周，美联储主席伯南克告诉记者说，最终的经济复苏需要一段时间积蓄力量。很可能失业的情况在经济增长的初期还会存在。