澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2015-02-01

 The local share market has closed higher today. The All Ords ended the session up 19 points, or 1/3 of a percent. The ASX 200 added the same amount. The big banks finished mixed. Commonwealth¹ added 2/3 of a percent. There were some good results among the retailers². Myer put on almost 1% and BHP Billiton closed 1% higher. Checking elsewhere in our region now, Japan’s Nikkei is on the rise, but Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is losing ground. And the Australian dollar has recovered a little from its five and a half year low of 77.2 US cents. It’s currently fetching at 77.95. 

 

Private research has found the cut to mortgage interest rate would not benefit households as much as the recent drop in petrol prices. Ratings agency Fitch has released its analysis in the wake of mounting speculation³ that the reserve bank could make a cut at next week’s meeting. Fitch says for the average mortgage holder⁴, driving an average amount, cheaper petrol clearly provides more benefit. 

 

And Origin Energy second quarter production has fallen but the group has reaffirmed its Australia-Pacific LNG project is on track. The company’s output for the three months till the end of December fell 4% on the previous year. That’s a decrease of 10% year on year. Lower production and commodity prices also saw the group’s revenues plummet(not sure).

1 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

2 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

3 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

4 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。