澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2011-02-05

 European Union leaders gathered in Brussels for an economic summit on the debt crisis facing the continent. Germany and France asked European neighbours to back unified¹ cross-border policies in a bid to start governing the eurozone economy as one, but Belgium opposed parts of the plan upon entering the summit. Originally to be a low-key event dedicated² to energy, the crisis in Egypt has also emerged as a key topic.

 

The number of people registered as unemployed³ in the United States has fallen to its lowest level for almost two years. Figures for January put the number out of work at nine per cent of the workforce⁴, down from 9.4 per cent in December. However, analysts⁵ have predicted much stronger job creation.

 

And checking the market numbers now: in the US, the Dow is trading up by about 20 points. Europe's main stock markets rose on Friday as investors⁶ set aside Egypt concerns to focus on upcoming US jobs data. Japan's Nikkei rose on Friday on optimism over a US economic recovery. And local shares have ended the week on positive footing with gains across most of the sectors⁷. And the Australian dollar is buying just over one US dollar and about 63 British pence.

1 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

2 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

3 unemployed   

adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的

参考例句：

• There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
• The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

4 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

5 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。

6 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

7 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》