VOA慢速英语 2008 1003a

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Wednesday night, the United States Senate passed a rescue bill for the financial industry. A wide majority sent the bill for debate in the House of Representatives. The House rejected its own version on Monday.
　 COLLAPSE⁵: collapse" bordercolor="#111111" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="15%" align="left" border="0">

Video image of the final 74-25 vote in the Senate on the Emergency Economic Stabilization1 Act of 2008

Like the earlier bill, the new one approves up to seven hundred billion dollars to buy troubled assets. The government would aim to resell them later, maybe even at a profit.

But the Senate added so-called sweeteners for the House. These include tax breaks for businesses and individuals and a temporary increase in federal insurance for bank deposits.

Yet general elections are in a month. Members of Congress know that many Americans hate the idea of what they call a "bailout for Wall Street." Public opinion takers find greater support, however, when the plan is described as a "rescue."

Supporters say it is needed to rescue Main Street, meaning average Americans. Businesses large and small are finding it harder to get credit -- a bad sign for an already weak economy.

One thing is clear: credit demands trust, and there is a lack of it in the financial system. This loss of confidence has led to a flight from risk. Yields on short-term Treasury² debt recently fell to almost zero. Investors³ were willing to accept almost no interest because they were more interested in safety.

Another recent sign of worry: the LIBOR, the widely used London Interbank Offered Rate. The LIBOR for overnight loans between banks rose above six percent. Banks are holding onto money in case they need it for a sudden increase in withdrawals⁴.

Another part of the problem is suspicion about the assets that other banks might use to secure a loan. Many financial companies invested in pieces of complex securities based on mortgages and other debt. Spreading the risk this way meant high returns with little danger. Or so they thought.

Then the housing market began to collapse in two thousand six, followed by these securities. No one knows how to value them now. The financial industry has had to report billions in losses because of accounting⁶ rules.

One rule is called mark-to-market. Companies must mark the value of their assets as the price they would receive if they tried to sell them. But what if the market has collapsed⁷? Some experts call for a suspension of this rule. In any case, experts say the problem of toxic⁸ assets must be solved before credit markets will unfreeze.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter

1 Stabilization   

稳定化

参考例句：

• The position of barycentre on plane directly impacts the stabilization and manipulation of plane. 飞机重心位置直接影响飞机的稳定和操纵特性。
• With the higher olefins, stabilization of the energetic intermediates occurs more easily. 在较高的烯烃情况下，高能的中间物稳定作用更易出现。

2 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

3 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

4 withdrawals   

n.收回，取回，撤回( withdrawal的名词复数 )；撤退，撤走；收回[取回，撤回，撤退，撤走]的实例；推出（组织），提走（存款），戒除毒瘾，对说过的话收回，孤僻

参考例句：

• He has made several withdrawals from his bank account. 他从银行账户上提了几次款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It is not the bank's policy to deduct interest on withdrawals. 提款需扣除利息这并非是本银行的政策。 来自辞典例句

5 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

6 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

7 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

8 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。