VOA慢速英语2012 Agriculture Report - Worries About Rising Food Prices May Ease

 

Agriculture Report - Worries About Rising Food Prices May Ease

农业报道 - 粮食价格上涨的担忧可能缓解

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

这里是美国之音慢速英语农业报道。

A United Nations report says world food prices stayed the same in August. Prices were unchanged after rising sharply in July.

联合国一份报告称，8月份世界粮食价格保持不变。7月份大幅上涨后，8月份粮价基本持平。

A summer of drought in the United States and Russia has reduced expectations for corn and wheat supplies. As a result, a measure of food prices by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization rose six percent in July. But FAO economist¹ Concepcion Calpe says the expected reductions did not get any worse in August.

美国和俄罗斯夏季的干旱使玉米和小麦的供应预期减小。因此，联合国粮农组织的食品价格指数7月份上涨了6%。但粮农组织经济学家康塞普西翁·卡尔佩(Concepcion Calpe)表示，预期的减少在8月份并没有继续恶化。

CONCEPCION CALPE: "We're not in a bad situation, or as bad situation as we were last month because the prospects² are not worsening further. And this is already good news."

卡尔佩：“现在的情况还好，或者说不像上个月那么差。因为形势没有进一步恶化，而这就是好消息。”

Ms. Calpe says the FAO price index remains³ about ten percent below its highest level, reached in February twenty-eleven. But prices are still twice as high as they were ten years ago.

卡尔佩表示，粮农组织价格指数维持在比2011年最高水平低10%左右。但价格仍比十年前高一倍。

Demand remains high for food commodities like maize⁴ and wheat. The U.N. estimates that more cereal crops will be consumed this year than will be produced. That means markets will have to use some of the supplies that have been kept in reserve. Concepcion Calpe says those reserves have been low for several years.

玉米和小麦等食品类商品的需求仍然很大。据联合国估计，今年消耗的谷类作物会超出生产的谷类作物。这意味着市场将不得不动用一些储备物资。卡尔佩说，储备多年来一直都很低。

CONCEPCION CALPE: "And therefore we are very much susceptible⁵ to very quick changes because there is very little buffer⁶ on which to rely to protect ourselves should there be another bad news on the production front."

卡尔佩：“因此我们会对（粮食价格的）快速变化变得非常敏感，因为我们借以保护自己的缓冲很少。这在粮食生产方面是另一个坏消息。”

She says there will be ups and downs in prices until production meets the level of demand. Still, many experts do not expect a repeat of the crisis of two thousand seven and two thousand eight. Prices jumped, playing a part in civil unrest in several countries.

她说，价格会起起伏伏，直到粮食生产满足需求。尽管如此，许多专家并不认为2007年和2008年的危机会重演。物价暴涨在一些国家的内乱中也起到了作用。

For one thing, these experts point out that energy prices are lower now. That means producing and transporting food is not as costly⁷. And Gary Ellerts at the United States Agency for International Development says this year's bad weather has not affected⁸ another important crop: rice. Mr. Eilerts is head of the agency's Famine Early Warning System.

这些专家指出原因之一是目前能源价格较低，这意味着生产和运输食品没那么昂贵。美国国际开发署的加里·埃勒（Gary Ellerts）表示，今年的恶劣天气没有影响到另一种重要作物：水稻。埃勒先生是该机构饥荒早期预警系统的负责人。

GARY EILERTS: "Rice is very calm, very nice. Prices are not volatile⁹. There's a large supply. And so, countries that depend on that, that were hurt a great deal in two thousand eight, are not being touched right now."

埃勒：“水稻价格非常平稳没有波动，供应充足。因此那些在2008年受到极大损害的依赖水稻的国家当前没有受到影响。”

However, economist Lourdes Adriano at the Asian Development Bank says prices could increase if India stops exporting rice because of a drought.

然而，亚洲开发银行的经济学家卢尔德·阿德里亚诺（Lourdes Adriano）表示，如果印度因为干旱停止出口大米，价格就会上涨。

LOURDES ADRIANO: "If we have a severe monsoon¹⁰ in India and it starts banning again the export of rice, then we will have a major problem. Because as you know, global rice trade is very thin. There are very, very few major exporters."

阿德里亚诺：“如果印度遭遇严重季风并开始再次禁止出口大米，那么我们就会遇到大麻烦。因为你知道，全球大米贸易非常薄弱，大米主要出口国非常少。”

Prices jumped when India banned rice exports in two thousand eight during the food inflation crisis.

2008年食品通胀危机期间，印度禁止大米出口后价格暴涨。

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. I'm Jim Tedder¹¹.

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Contributing: Steve Baragona and Ron Corben

1 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

2 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 maize   

n.玉米

参考例句：

• There's a field planted with maize behind the house.房子后面有一块玉米地。
• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。

5 susceptible   

adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的

参考例句：

• Children are more susceptible than adults.孩子比成人易受感动。
• We are all susceptible to advertising.我们都易受广告的影响。

6 buffer   

n.起缓冲作用的人(或物)，缓冲器；vt.缓冲

参考例句：

• A little money can be a useful buffer in time of need.在急需时，很少一点钱就能解燃眉之急。
• Romantic love will buffer you against life's hardships.浪漫的爱会减轻生活的艰辛。

7 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。

8 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。

9 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

10 monsoon   

n.季雨，季风，大雨

参考例句：

• The monsoon rains started early this year.今年季雨降雨开始得早。
• The main climate type in that region is monsoon.那个地区主要以季风气候为主要气候类型。

11 tedder   

n.（干草）翻晒者，翻晒机

参考例句：

• Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆？特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
• Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆？泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网