VOA慢速英语 2008 1205a

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

The United States is already one year into a recession. That was the news this week from the National Bureau of Economic Research. The downturn is the longest since a recession that began in nineteen eighty-one and lasted sixteen months.

Economists¹ generally wait for production to shrink for six months in a row before they declare a recession. But the bureau, a private group, uses a wider set of information to measure the economy. The news only confirmed what many people already knew: that the world's largest economy is weak and may not recover soon.

Worsening conditions have led to a big drop in spending, especially on costly² products like new cars. Even Japanese automaker Toyota saw its sales fall thirty-four percent in the United States in November from a year ago.
　

G.M. chief executive Rick Wagoner steps out of the Chevrolet Malibu hybrid3 car in which he rode to Washington

The heads of Chrysler, Ford⁴ and General Motors returned to Congress this week to again ask for federal aid. Congressional leaders denounced them two weeks ago after they came in private jets with no clear plans for saving their industry.

This time, the chiefs drove to Washington in fuel-saving hybrid vehicles. And their companies presented detailed⁵ restructuring plans. The request for aid has risen from twenty-five billion dollars two weeks ago to thirty-four billion in loans and credit lines.

G.M. wants almost half of that, and says it needs four billion dollars this month. It warned that without support it cannot continue to operate.

Ford is in a better position. But the sharing of suppliers means it could be affected⁶ if G.M. or Chrysler fails. Ford is asking for a nine billion dollar credit line in case it needs it.

Chrysler is the smallest and most troubled of America's Big Three. It says it needs a seven billion dollar loan by the end of the month.

Two days of congressional hearings began Thursday in the Senate Banking⁷ Committee. The chairman, Democrat⁸ Chris Dodd, said he would support helping⁹ the automakers for the good of the economy. But the committee's top Republican, Richard Shelby, continued to express opposition¹⁰ to a bailout.

A main root of the world financial crisis is the weak housing market in the United States. The Treasury¹¹ Department has been under pressure to help troubled homeowners. Now comes news that the department is developing a plan aimed at reducing interest rates on mortgage loans for some buyers of homes. That could be good for homeowners trying to sell.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.

1 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

3 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

4 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

5 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

8 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

10 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

11 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。