VOA慢速英语2009年-Economics Report - US Says Economy Grew 3.

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Early estimates show that the United States economy began to grow again in July, August and September. The three-and-a-half percent growth was the first expansion in more than a year, and the strongest in two years.

The government said increases in consumer spending and exports and improvements in business investment led the growth. So did increased federal spending and housing investments.
　
The economy is growing again, but when will jobs follow? Job seekers attend a jobs fair in Little Rock, Arkansas, Tuesday.

But high unemployment could limit growth for some time.

President Obama had this reaction to Thursday's report on the gross domestic product -- a wide measure of goods and services in the economy.

BARACK OBAMA: "This is obviously welcome news and an affirmation that this recession is abating¹ and the steps we've taken have made a difference. But I also know that we've got a long way to go to fully² restore our economy and recover from what's been the longest and deepest downturn since the Great Depression."

That downturn was partly caused by bankers and others taking irresponsible risks to earn huge payments. So say their critics. Criticism of Wall Street pay is nothing new. But never before has the government used hundreds of billions of dollars to rescue companies that made risky³ investments.

In June, the Obama administration appointed lawyer Kenneth Feinberg as the "special master" on executive pay -- also known as the pay czar. Congress gave him power over compensation of the twenty-five highest-paid employees at seven companies most indebted to taxpayers⁴.

This week, he gave lawmakers a progress report.
　
Kenneth Feinberg

KENNETH FEINBERG: "We greatly reduced the amount of cash that would be made available to these senior officials. We reduced that cash by approximately ninety percent."

The seven companies are in the financial and auto⁵ industries. Now Kenneth Feinberg must consider their next seventy-five highest paid officials.

But some management experts warn that limiting pay could make it harder for taxpayers to get their money back. Edward Lawler at the University of Southern California says these companies may now have difficulty getting and keeping high-quality employees.

But he agrees that in recent years, many companies have tied pay to short-term performance, instead of their long-term health. He also says boards of directors need to do more to control pay.

EDWARD LAWLER: "We could have boards that do a much better job of designing compensation plans. If we had good boards, I think they could certainly do a better job of that than the government can."

Last week, the Federal Reserve proposed to examine pay policies at thousands of banks. The central bank would reject policies that it thought might cause bankers to take too much risk.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report. I'm Mario Ritter.

1 abating   

减少( abate的现在分词 )； 减去； 降价； 撤消（诉讼）

参考例句：

• The storm showed no signs of abating. 暴风雨没有减弱的迹象。
• The recent public anxiety about this issue may now be abating. 近来公众对这个问题的焦虑心情现在也许正在缓和下来。

2 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

3 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

4 taxpayers   

纳税人，纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
• She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。

5 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。