VOA标准英语2011--Markets Rise But Questions Remain After Euro Debt Deal

Markets Rise But Questions Remain After Euro Debt Deal

 

Markets rose sharply on news of European leaders reaching an agreement vital to solve the region's huge debt crisis. The deal is aimed at preventing the crisis spreading to larger eurozone economies like Italy, but analysts² say more detail is needed if the crisis is to be contained.

Two years of crisis in the eurozone came down to this Brussels summit.

Europe’s leaders met through the night. After 11 hours of talks - with many journalists sleeping in the press room - German Chancellor³ Angela Merkel was among the leaders to emerge hailing a breakthrough.

“I am aware, and everybody was aware that the whole world was looking at this meeting,” she said. “That we can show the world how we can guard ourselves from this deep economic crisis. And I think that tonight we Europeans have taken the right measures.”

Global markets agreed. Share indices across Europe, Asia and the United States all showed early gains Thursday.

But the optimism may be short-lived, says Tobias Blattner, European economist⁴ at Daiwa Capital Markets.

A man walks past an index board at a hall of the Athens Stock Exchange in Athens October 27, 2011. Greek bank stocks jumped more than 13 percent in early morning trade on Thursday after euro zone leaders agreed a new rescue deal for Greece, despite plans for a 50 percent haircut on the country's government bonds.

“Now the question is obviously, ‘How long will it last?’ And I think this is where we are skeptical⁵ and we think it will be a very short-lived episode simply because the summit yesterday left too many questions open," said Blattner.

Eurozone leaders agreed a three-pronged approach.

Banks will be recapitalized with 100 billion euros. Greece’s debtors⁶ will be asked to write-off half of the debts, and the European bailout fund will be ‘leveraged up’ to about a trillion euros to try to cover other indebted countries like Italy or Spain.

Not good enough, says Simon Tilford, chief economist at analyst¹ group the Center for European Reform.

“There is no new money involved," said Tilford. "What they are essentially⁷ saying is that we will cover a proportion of your losses if these countries get into funding difficulties. Now the question is whether that will be enough to persuade investors⁸ to lend to countries. It is not clear it will be.”

In Greece, which faces years of austerity cutbacks under the bailout, reaction was despondent⁹.

One man said, "I do not believe it was a good deal, but it was inevitable¹⁰. At this moment, Greece has gone bankrupt."

Another man added, "It is a dark and shady deal. Everything here gets worse by the day. God help us."

Investors’ concern is turning to Italy. Debt in the eurozone’s third-biggest economy is 120 percent of GDP.

In Rome, the deal was greeted with skepticism.

"I think it all stems from the fact that we are not credible¹¹ anymore,” one commuter¹² said.

“I do not think this government is capable of managing this crisis situation,” said another.

In a week, many of the European leaders will reassemble at the G20 summit in France. There, analysts say Europe will look for international support from countries like China to help bolster¹³ the debt deal.

1 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

2 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

3 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

4 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。

5 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

6 debtors   

n.债务人，借方( debtor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Never in a debtors' prison? 从没有因债务坐过牢么？ 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

7 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

8 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

9 despondent   

adj.失望的，沮丧的，泄气的

参考例句：

• He was up for a time and then，without warning,despondent again.他一度兴高采烈，但忽然又情绪低落下来。
• I feel despondent when my work is rejected.作品被拒后我感到很沮丧。

10 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

11 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

12 commuter   

n.(尤指市郊之间)乘公交车辆上下班者

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。
• She accidentally stepped on his foot on a crowded commuter train. 她在拥挤的通勤列车上不小心踩到了他的脚。

13 bolster   

n.枕垫；v.支持，鼓励

参考例句：

• The high interest rates helped to bolster up the economy.高利率使经济更稳健。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。