Officials in Washington are openly discussing the possibility of another federal stimulus package to boost the troubled U.S. economy. The discussion comes as leading U.S. economic indicators edge slightly higher.
美国国会和行政部门星期一开始公开讨论新的经济刺激方案，以振兴陷入困境的美国经济。
This year has already seen two aggressive steps by the federal government to prop up the economy.
今年以来，为了使美国经济重振旗鼓，联邦政府已经采取了两个大刀阔斧的措施。
In February, as the economy was slowing down, Congress passed a $150 billion stimulus package that featured rebate checks for middle- and lower-income taxpayers.
2月份，随着经济走缓，国会批准了一项1500亿美元的经济刺激方案，主要是给中低收入的纳税人发放退税款。
Earlier this month, amid a worsening credit crisis, President Bush signed a $700 billion financial rescue bill, $250 billion of which is being used to boost capital for troubled American banks.
这个月早些时候，随着信贷危机的恶化，布什总统又签署了一个总值7千亿美元的金融拯救计划，并且将其中的2500亿美元用于帮助资金短缺的美国银行。
Now, U.S. officials are openly discussing the merits of a third government economic intervention.
现在，美国官员又开始讨论政府对经济进行第三次干预的好处。
Testifying on Capitol Hill Monday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Congress should consider another stimulus package.
美国联邦储备委员会主席伯南克星期一在国会作证时表示，国会应该考虑下一个刺激方案。
"The uncertainty currently surrounding the economic outlook is unusually large," said Ben Bernanke. "Any fiscal action inevitably involves trade-offs - not only among current needs and objectives, but also because commitments of resources today can burden future generations and constrain future policy options. That being said, with the economy likely to be weak for several quarters and with some risk of a protracted slowdown, consideration of a fiscal package by the Congress at this juncture seems appropriate."
他说：“目前经济前景的不确定性异乎寻常地大。任何财政政策都不可避免地涉及利弊得失的权衡。这种权衡不仅针对现在的需要和目标，同时也意味着我们今天动用的资源会给美国的下一代造成负担，同时也会制约未来的经济政策。不过话虽然这么说，我们目前的经济在未来几个季度内可能会持续走软，并存在长期减速的风险，因此国会现在考虑出台一个财政刺激计划似乎是妥当的。”
The central bank chief added that any stimulus should be crafted to boost economic activity in the short term without significantly adding to America's fiscal deficit in the long term. Despite being prodded repeatedly by legislators, Bernanke declined to say how much money should be spent or specify what the package should contain.
伯南克说，任何刺激计划的宗旨都必须是在短期内刺激经济，而不至于在长期内显著增加美国的财政赤字。尽管议员们多次追问，伯南克拒绝就这个计划的金额数量和具体内容做出回答。
The White House says President Bush is "open to the idea" of another stimulus package, but that it would have to see how Congress formulates it.
白宫说，布什总统“愿意考虑”新一轮经济刺激方案，但这要取决于国会如何设计这个方案。
Fed chief Bernanke expressed confidence that the current financial rescue package will help unfreeze credit and allow businesses and consumers to secure loans that will boost economic activity.
伯南克对于目前的金融救助计划可以舒缓信贷冻结表达了信心。信贷解冻将有利于企业和消费者贷款，从而刺激经济活动。
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson provided an update on how the rescue package is being implemented. He stressed that, while huge amounts of public funds have been allocated to save troubled financial institutions, ultimately there should be no cost for taxpayers.
与此同时，美国财政部长保尔森就金融救助计划的具体实施提供了进一步信息。他强调，尽管大笔纳税人的钱被用来救助陷于困境的金融机构，但最终纳税人不会蒙受损失。
"This is an investment, not an expenditure, and there is no reason to believe that this program will cost taxpayers anything," said Henry Paulson.
保尔森说：“这是投资，不是开支。我们没有理由相信这个计划会让纳税人遭受损失。”
Paulson says funds are being used to purchase assets that will be sold at a later date, allowing the government to recoup money spent.
保尔森说，用纳税人的钱收购的资产以后将再度出售，政府可以因此收回资金。
After months of relentlessly negative economic news, Monday brought an indication of a slight uptick in U.S. economic prospects. The New York-based Conference Board's forecast of future economic activity edged higher by a third of a percent after two months of steep declines. The better-than-expected forecast helped spark gains on U.S. markets. Wall Street's main stock index closed with triple-digit gains Monday, about 400 points or nearly five percent.
在经过几个月的坏消息后，星期一，美国经济前景终于出现了一丝亮色。总部设在纽约的经济智库会议委员会关于未来经济活动的预测在经历两个月的急剧下滑后，今天出现了0.3%的增长。这个好于预期的结果带动了美国股市。道指大幅上涨了413点。 |