Central bank chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that the U.S. home mortgage market is still not functioning properly and more needs to be done to promote a recovery.
美国联邦储备委员会主席伯南克星期四说，美国的房贷市场情况仍旧不好，需要采取更多措施，推动住房市场复苏。
Bernanke spoke at housing conference held at the Federal Reserve. He said the government must do more to turn back the wave of foreclosures on homeowners unable to meet their monthly mortgage payments. More than 2.2 million foreclosures are expected to have occurred this year.
伯南克在美联储住房会议上讲话时指出，政府必须采取更多行动，扭转不能按月支付房贷的人被收回房屋赎回权的浪潮。预计，今年丢掉房屋收回权的案例超过220万。
"Our housing market is under a lot of stress, both because of the adjustment going on because of the housing price correction, but also because the mortgage market is dysfunctional to some extent," he said.
伯南克说：“我们的住房市场面临许多压力，一方面是因为房屋价格修正所引起的调整，同时也是因为房贷市场在某种程度上没有正常发挥作用。”
What has become a global economic crisis was touched off in August 2007 by a wave of defaults in the sub-prime U.S. housing markets. Both the Fed and the Treasury have initiated various programs to assist mortgage borrowers and recently mortgage interest rates have fallen to their lowest levels in several years.
目前的这场全球经济危机是2007年8月由美国房屋次贷市场出现的违约欠款潮触发的。美联储和财政部制定了各种计划，帮助房屋贷款人。最近房贷利率已经降至几年来的最低水平。
Stock prices in New York fell Thursday amid rising uncertainty over whether congress will approve emergency loans for the Detroit-based U.S. auto industry. Making their second appearance on Capitol Hill in two weeks, the heads of the big three carmakers warned that without immediate assistance one or more of the companies could go bankrupt.
星期四，由于国会是否批准为美国汽车工业提供紧急贷款的前景不明朗，纽约股市下跌。美国三大汽车制造公司主管星期四第二次出现在国会，他们警告说，如果不立即得到帮助，一家或更多的公司将破产。
Money manager Lincoln Ellis says General Motors shares tumbled 15 percent amid renewed doubts about that company's viability.
理财专家林肯·埃利斯说，由于人们对通用汽车公司的发展能力存有疑问，通用公司的股价骤跌了15%。
"You're hearing so many conflicting messages [on the auto bailout]… There is also definitely uncertainty on the jobs report that is coming Friday," he said.
他说：“人们听到有关救助汽车工业的许多相互矛盾的消息，另外，星期五将出台的就业情况报告肯定也有很多不确定的地方。”
Market participants are anticipating a report showing a loss of up to 300,000 U.S. jobs in November.
市场人士预期这份报告将显示11月有30万人丢掉了工作。
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 215 points, or 2.5 percent, to 8,376. It was the first loss for the index in three days.
道琼斯工业平均指数星期四下跌215点，跌幅2.5%。收于8千3百76点，是三天来第一次下跌。
Oil prices were steady at below $44 a barrel. Reflecting plummeting global demand, oil is down nearly 70 percent from its July 2008 record high and is now at its lowest level in nearly four years.
原油价格稳定在每桶不到44美元。由于全球需求疲软，原油价格已经从2008年7月的最高点下滑了近70%，降至近四年来的最低点。 |