恐怖袭击阴影笼罩美国乃至全球经济

65 恐怖袭击阴影笼罩美国乃至全球经济

IN THE NEWS - September 22, 2001: Economic Effects of Terrorist¹ AttacksBy Cynthia Kirk

    (start at 1'06") This is the VOA Special English program, IN THE NEWS.
    The economic (1)effects of the (2)terrorist (3)attacks in the United States last week are spreading across the country and the world. The attacks in New York City and Washington D.C. have hurt many businesses, especially the airline industry and financial markets. Many companies have been forced to (4)dismiss² thousands of workers. Many (5)individual states are concerned about their economic future.
    Monday was the first day of trading on the American stock³ market since the attacks September Eleventh. The stock market (6)suffered major losses. The Dow Jones industrial average lost seven percent of its value. The other major measures of the value of American stocks⁴ fell to their lowest levels in three years.
    Some economic experts say the drop in the value of stocks could directly affect long-term spending. They say it may cause people to lose (7)trust in the economy and spend less money. Businesses across the country already have reported decreases in sales. Experts note that the American economy was close to a (8)recession even before the attacks.
    The airline industry was probably hardest hit by the attacks. The nation’s skies were (9)temporarily closed to all air travel. Travelers remain frightened and are (10)avoiding flying. High fuel and labor⁵ costs are making the situation worse. The airlines are losing hundreds of millions of dollars each day.
    Major airlines in the United States have (11)announced plans to dismiss almost eighty-thousand workers. A major builder of airplanes, Boeing, says it will dismiss as many as thirty-thousand workers. Airlines in many other countries are cutting flights and jobs. Many other businesses (12)dependent on the airline industry also have been harmed.
    The American airline industry has asked the federal⁶ government for help. Airline officials are hopeful after Congressional leaders and administration⁸ officials agreed Friday to a fifteen-thousand-million dollar financial (13)aid plan for the industry.
     There are also concerns about the economic effects of any military action. This could raise the price of oil. Production could be reduced if a large number of part time troops are called to active duty. Trade could be (14)restricted.
    On Monday, the United States Federal Reserve lowered interest rates. The action was designed to support the economy by making it easier for people and businesses to borrow money. The European Central Bank took similar action.
    The Bush administration and Congress⁷ are considering several tax and spending (15)proposals. President Bush has already signed into law a forty-thousand-million dollar emergency spending plan.
    Economic experts say they will know more in the next few weeks about what direction the economy is going.
    This VOA Special English program, IN THE NEWS, was written by Cynthia Kirk. This is Steve Ember.

 

(1) effect[ i5fekt ]n.结果, 效果, 作用, 影响, (在视听方面给人流下的)印象vt.招致, 实现, 达到(目的等)
(2) terrorist[5terErIst]n.恐怖分子
(3) attack[ E5tAk ]n.进攻, 攻击, (用语言)抨击, 批评, 疾病发作, 侵袭vt.攻击, 抨击, 动手处理(某事)vi.攻击
(4) dismiss[ dis5mis ]vt.解散, 下课, 开除, 解职, 使(或让)离开vi.解散
(5) individual[ 7indi5vidjuEl ]n.个人, 个体adj.个别的, 单独的, 个人的
(6) suffer[ 5sQfE ]vt.遭受, 经历, 忍受vi.受痛苦, 受损害
(7) trust[ trQst ]vt.信任, 信赖, 盼望, 希望, 赊卖, 热望, 切望n.(～ in) 信任, 信赖
(8) recession[ ri5seFEn ]n.撤回, 退回, 退后, 工商业之衰退, 不景气
(9) temporary[ 5tempErEri ]adj.暂时的, 临时的, 临时性
(10) avoid[ E5vCid ]vt.避免, 消除
(11) announce[ E5nauns ]vt.宣布, 通告
(12) dependent[ di5pendEnt ]adj.依靠的, 依赖的, 由...决定的, 随...而定的
(13) aid[ eid ]n.帮助, 援助, 帮助者, 有帮助的事物vt.资助, 援助, 帮助
(14) restrict[ ris5trikt ]vt.限制, 约束, 限定
(15) proposal[ prE5pEuzEl ]n.提议, 建议

 

1 terrorist   

n.恐怖主义者，恐怖分子

参考例句：

• Without the gun,I'm a sitting duck for any terrorist.没有这支枪，我就成了恐怖分子下手的目标了。
• The district was put on red alert during a terrorist's bomb scare.这个地区在得到恐怖分子炸弹恐吓后作了应急准备。

2 dismiss   

v.解雇，开除；把（某人）打发走；解散

参考例句：

• The committee has decided to dismiss him.委员会已决定辞退他。
• Please dismiss all doubts about it. 请打消对此事的一切顾虑。

3 stock   

n.存货，储备；树干；血统；股份；家畜；adj.存货的；平凡的，惯用的；股票的；畜牧的；vt.进货，采购；储存；供给；vi.出新芽；进货

参考例句：

• The shop takes stock every week on Friday mornings.这家商店每星期五早晨盘点存货。
• Experts have forecast an upturn in the stock market.专家已预测股票市场价格有上升趋势。

4 stocks   

n.（树木等的）干( stock的名词复数 )；公债；家系；家族

参考例句：

• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse. 经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They want to unload the stocks on the market. 他们想把股票在市场上抛售掉。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

6 federal   

adj.联盟的；联邦的；(美国)联邦政府的

参考例句：

• Switzerland is a federal republic.瑞士是一个联邦共和国。
• The schools are screaming for federal aid.那些学校强烈要求联邦政府的援助。

7 Congress   

n.(代表)大会；(C-:美国等国的)国会，议会

参考例句：

• There were some days to wait before the Congress.大会的召开还有几天时间。
• After 18 years in Congress,he intented to return to private life.在国会供职18年后，他打算告老还乡。

8 administration   

n.经营，管理；行政，行政机关，管理部门

参考例句：

• Who is in charge of the administration of your company?你们公司的行政工作由谁负责？
• The teachers are responsible to the school administration.教师向学校行政负责。