英国新闻听力 奥巴马称美国经济向正确方向前进（在线收听）

The American President Barack Obama says the latest economic statistics are an important sign the United States is heading in the right direction. President Obama said the economy had done measurably better than expected, but with an unemployment report due next week, he acknowledged there wouldn't be a real recovery as long as job losses continued.

"As far as I‘m concerned, we won’t have a recovery as long as we keep losing jobs, and I will not rest until every American who wants a job can find one. But history does show that you need to have economic growth before you have job growth, and today’s GDP is an important sign that the economy is heading in the right direction and that business investment which had been plummeting in last several months is showing signs of stabilizing. This means that eventually, businesses will start growing and they’ll start hiring again."

The US House of Representatives has approved a law designed to keep a tighter rein on excessive pay and bonuses paid to bankers and other financial executives. It will allow government regulators to limit executive pay deals which, in their view, encourage inappropriate risk and give shareholders a bigger advisory role in pay packages. The bill now has to go to the Senate.

Asia’s first female President Corazon Aquino who led the Philippines for six years has died of cancer at the age of 76. She headed the People’s Power Revolt against the repressive 20-year rule of Ferdinand Marcos in 1986. Having been thrust into politics after her husband, a leading Marcos' opponent, was shot dead. Here she is rallying the crowds back then:

"I ask you to let your voices be heard. I ask you to let the people’s power be felt. I ask you to send this message in language unmistakable and clear. Let our people go. Let the Filipino people go. "

The European Union and International Lending institutions have reached an agreement with Ukraine on a deal aimed at ensuring Russian gas supplies to Europe. In January, many countries were left without gas because of a payment dispute between Moscow and Kiev. Sonita Narhr has more.

The European Commission said under the deal, international lenders say they are ready to give Ukraine some 1.7 billion dollars in loans to help it pay its massive gas bill to Russia. The head of the commission, Manuel Barroso, said it will pave the way for Ukraine to reform its gas sector. And this, he said, would provide the stability needed to significantly reduce the risk of another gas crisis between Russia and Ukraine. Russia provides about a quarter of the gas consumed in the EU. And 80% of that is piped through Ukraine.

The United Nation’s Food Agencies says it’s facing critical funding shortages that have forced it to slash food deliveries to millions of people facing starvation. The World Food Program says it’s set to cancel deliveries to northern Uganda and it says if it doesn’t find extra funding in the next few weeks, it would also have to shut down parts of its airway which flies workers to some of the world's worst humanitarian trouble spots. The WFP has in the past issued similar warnings when faced with funding problems.

The Supreme Court in Pakistan has declared that emergency rule imposed in 2007 by the former President Parvez Musharraf was invalid and unconstitutional. The ruling opens the way for the removal of dozens of judges Mr. Musharraf appointed to replace those who opposed him. Mr. Musharraf resigned a year ago to avoid impeachment.

The Iraqi Interior Ministry says 30 people have been killed in a series of bomb attacks on Shiite mosques in Baghdad. The blasts at five separate mosques came within a short space of time as worshippers were leaving after Friday prayers. More than 130 people were injured. Interior Ministry sources say some of the causalities were caused by Iraqi police opening fire in the chaos.

A baby crocodile has caused panic on a flight from Abu Dhabi to Cairo by escaping from a passenger's hand luggage. Simon Ponserd has the details.

Terrified passengers screamed and cowered in their seats as they realized their plane was carrying an unexpected guest-a baby crocodile, 30 centimeters long. The reptile wriggled out of a bag and took a leisurely stroll down the aisles before eventually being cornered and captured by members of the crew. None of the passengers on the Egypt Air flight would admit to taking the crocodile onboard. It's also not clear why it wasn't detected in security checks. The baby crocodile will now be given a new home at Cairo zoo.

美国总统巴拉克·奥巴马称，最新的经济统计数据是美国向正确方向前进的重要信号。奥巴马说，根据衡量，经济发展好于预期，但是鉴于下周即将公布的失业率，他承认，只要失业的情况继续，就不算是真正的复苏。

“我担心的是，如果我们仍有人失业，我们就没有真正的复兴，在每一个想找工作的美国人找到工作之前，我不会停止努力。但是历史已经表明，在就业机会增长之前，必须首先出现经济增长，今天公布的GDP是一个重要迹象，表明经济正朝向正确的方向前进，过去几个月出现的下降的商业投资现在已经出现稳定的迹象。这意味着，最终，商业会开始增长，他们会再次雇佣新职员。”

美国众议院即将通过一部法律，旨在限制银行家和其他金融高管薪资和奖金的过度支付。这部法律将允许政府调控机构限制高管薪资，让股东在薪资体系中发挥更大的咨询作用。按照他们的观点，过度支付薪资和奖金将导致不适当的风险。该法案现在即将交付参议院。

领导菲律宾六年之久的亚洲第一位女性总统科拉松?阿基诺女士（Corazon Aquino）因癌症去世，享年76岁。她在1986年领导人民力量革命反抗费迪南德·马科斯的镇压性独裁统治。她的丈夫是马可仕反对派领袖，在机场被暗杀，随后科拉松继承夫志，进入政坛。

“我要求你能让群众听到你的声音。我希望你能让人们感觉到人民力量的存在。我希望你能以准确清晰的声音传达这条信息。让我们的人民前行，让菲律宾人民前进。”

欧盟和国际借贷机构与乌克兰之间就一笔交易达成协议，该协议旨在确保俄罗斯向欧洲的天然气供应。一月份，由于莫斯科和基辅之间的支付争议导致多国冬季天然气断供。Sonita Narhr报道更详细信息。

欧洲委员会称，根据协议，国际借贷者说他们准备给予乌克兰17亿美元的贷款，以帮助其向俄罗斯支付巨额天然气账单。欧洲委员会负责人Manuel Barroso称，此举将为乌克兰天然气部门改革铺平道路。他说，这将提供一定的稳定性，大大降低俄罗斯和乌克兰之间又一场天然气危机的风险。欧盟所消费的四分之一的天然气由俄罗斯提供。其中，80%通过乌克兰的管道运输。

联合国粮食署称其面临严重的资金短缺，被迫削减向数百万面临饥饿的难民的粮食输送。世界粮食计划署称其计划取消向乌干达北部的粮食输送，如果在未来的几周之内寻找不到新的资金来源，将被迫减少部分向人道主义状况最糟糕的地区运送工作人员的航线。粮食计划署以前遇到资金问题时也发出过同样的预警。

巴基斯坦最高法院称，2007年由前总统穆沙拉夫颁布的紧急法令是无效的，是违反宪法规定的。根据该裁决，必须解雇穆沙拉夫委任以取代其反对者的几十名法官。为了避免被弹劾，穆沙拉夫已于一年钱辞职。

伊拉克内政部称，巴格达什叶派清真寺发生一系列炸弹袭击，目前已造成30人死亡。在周五的祈祷之后，五座不同的清真寺内在很短的时间间隔之内连续发生爆炸，造成130多人受伤。来自内政部的信息来源称，一些伤亡由伊拉克警方在混乱中开枪导致。

由阿布扎比开往开罗的航班上，一条鳄鱼企图逃离一位乘客的手提行李，引起乘客恐慌。Simon Ponserd报道详细信息。

惊恐的乘客意识到飞机载了一位不速之客——一条幼年30厘米长的鳄鱼之后尖叫着畏缩在座位上。这条小鳄鱼从一个袋子中爬出来，悠闲地在走廊上散布，最终被逼到角落，被机组人员抓获。埃及航空公司航班上的乘客无人承认自己携带这条小鳄鱼登机。至于为什么在安检时没有被检查到也不得而知。这条小鳄鱼将被送往开罗动物园的新家。