World's Major Economies to Discuss Japan Intervention

    Japan's stock market retreated again Thursday, and officials from the world's leading economies agreed to meet about the effect the earthquake, tsunami¹ and nuclear crisis is having on the fragile global economic recovery.
    Investors（投资者） sent Tokyo's Nikkei index down more than 1.4 percent, but economic officials expressed more concern that the Japanese yen² currency hit a post-World War II record against the dollar before falling back somewhat. The yen has gained significant value since the natural disasters and concerns about radiation（放射,辐射） leaks at the country's Fukushima nuclear power plants.
    Analysts³ said some currency traders perceive the yen as a safe haven⁴ investment during Japan's turmoil⁵. Others say the currency's value has risen as Japanese companies repatriate⁶ their cash to help pay for the reconstruction⁷ effort that will be needed in the months ahead. The higher yen could create problems for the recovery of the world's third biggest economy by making Japanese exports more expensive for the rest of the world.
    Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said finance leaders from seven of the world's biggest economies will meet by phone early Friday to discuss the disaster and whether their central banks should intervene to stem the increase in the yen's value.
    The Nikkei had rallied on Wednesday, surging 5.7 percent to recover almost a third of the ground lost earlier this week. But Asian stocks resumed their downward track Thursday, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng market falling more than 1.8 percent and exchanges in other countries also down or flat. However, European stock indexes advanced 1 percent or more in midday trading and U.S. stocks increased in early trading.
    The yen surged to 76.52 to the dollar before falling back to more than 79. A strong yen is a big concern for major Japanese exporters like Toyota Motor, the world's largest automaker. Bloomberg financial news says for each yen the currency appreciates against the dollar, Toyota's earnings⁸ are cut by $372 million.
    The Japanese central bank on Thursday again pumped more money - $76 billion - into the country's economy to try to stem concerns about the country's finances. That increases the total for the week to $421 billion.
    Reuters reports the damage from the disasters could go as high as $200 billion, including the costs of rebuilding and disruptions to business and factory output.(本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑)

1 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

2 yen   

n. 日元；热望

参考例句：

• He wanted to convert his dollars into Japanese yen.他想将美元换成日币。
• He has a yen to be alone in a boat.他渴望独自呆在一条船上。

3 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。

4 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

5 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

6 repatriate   

v.遣返；返回；n.被遣返回国者

参考例句：

• The government safely repatriates victims.政府安全遣返了受害者。
• In this part,you need to formulate in detail repatriate the plan.在这一部分，你需要制定详细的归国计划。

7 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

8 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。