China spared from Hurricane Sandy's destruction

 China spared from Hurricane Sandy's destruction

BEIJING, Oct. 30 (Xinhua) -- Analysts² say that Hurricane Sandy, which is currently blazing a path of destruction along the East Coast of the United States, might have temporary but limited impacts on the international market and China.

Although Sandy is raging half a world away from China, it has garnered³ considerable attention from the Chinese public, as domestic TV networks have broadcast live images and related pictures have gone viral on China's social media sites.

Hurricane Sandy ranked among the hottest topics on Sina Weibo, a popular microblogging service, on Tuesday. Photos of torrential rains and vehicles submerged in water-logged streets reminded people of recent storm events in Beijing.

Sandy has claimed at least 16 lives in the U.S. and darkened wide swaths of the country's Eastern Seaboard, inflicting⁴ estimated losses of over 10 billion U.S. dollars on insurers.

Sandy has been downgraded from a hurricane to a post-tropical cyclone⁵, but is still expected to bring strong winds and downpours to the country's East Coast, according to the U.S. National Weather Service.

New York stock markets were closed for a second day Tuesday, as attention turned to whether Wall Street would resume operations on Wednesday, which marks the final trading day for October.

Toward midnight local time, there were confusing reports on whether the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) had been flooded. Major media outlets⁶ including CNN falsely reported that three feet of water stood on the trading floor, raising concerns of sustained delays to the exchange. (The reports were later corrected.)

It was the first time since 1888 that the NYSE has closed for two consecutive⁷ days because of inclement⁸ weather, but analysts have said the impact on global markets, and China in particular, would be limited.

"As much as Sandy could wreak⁹ havoc¹⁰ on the East Coast, a densely¹¹ populated area and world center of finance, its worldwide impact would be insignificant," said Dr. Meng Qingbin at the Beijing-based Renmin University.

Meng said Sandy has halted exchanges but not supply or demand, "which would be far from sufficient to change the fundamentals of the global economy."

Meng and Du Peng, a management consultant¹², also pointed¹³ to the United States' repeated dealings with extreme weather conditions.

"America is not like Japan in 2011. America is much larger in land, giving it plenty of room to maneuver," said Du, who works with Adfaith, a Chinese consultancy.

But should Sandy prove as destructive as Hurricane Katrina in 2005, it would be seen as a drag on the economy, cautioned a trader at Societe Generale.

Coupled with disappointing retail¹⁴ sales numbers from Spain and reports of possible instability in the Italian coalition¹⁵ government, a flight for U.S. Treasury¹⁶ bonds was seen prior to the closing of the market, as investors¹⁷ fled for safety.

Investors have been advised to keep their eyes on industries related to the rebuilding process following the superstorm, said Kevin Wei, who works for a major Chinese securities firm.

Sandy's immediate¹⁸ impact on commodities has been limited to oil, said Sun Yonggang, an analyst¹ with China's Everbright Futures¹⁹.

Brent crude for December dipped to a little over 109 U.S. dollars, and U.S. gasoline futures fell as well. By cutting electricity for millions and leaving even more residents homebound, analysts say, Sandy has dragged down oil demand down for the time being.

On Tuesday, China's benchmark Shanghai Composite Index edged 0.17 percent higher from the previous close, showing little disturbance²⁰ from the shutdown in the United States.

"The Chinese capital market still retains its independence after years of gradual opening up, and a hurricane like this is unlikely to dampen the confidence of the largely local investors," Meng said.

As the U.S. presidential election looms²¹, uncertainties²² are tying the hands of the worldwide market.

"With candidates neck-and-neck ahead of the presidential election, many investors are set to be in a wait-and-see mode. Hurricane Sandy, moreover, could see a disrupted start to the week in the U.S.," Michala Marcussen, Societe Generale's Global Head of Economics, wrote in an email to Xinhua.

1 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

2 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。

3 garnered   

v.收集并（通常）贮藏（某物），取得，获得( garner的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith gradually garnered a national reputation as a financial expert. 史密斯先生逐渐赢得全国金融专家的声誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals. 他的提议得到了广泛的支持。 来自辞典例句

4 inflicting   

把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was charged with maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm. 他被控蓄意严重伤害他人身体。
• It's impossible to do research without inflicting some pain on animals. 搞研究不让动物遭点罪是不可能的。

5 cyclone   

n.旋风，龙卷风

参考例句：

• An exceptionally violent cyclone hit the town last night.昨晚异常猛烈的旋风吹袭了那个小镇。
• The cyclone brought misery to thousands of people.旋风给成千上万的人带来苦难。

6 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 consecutive   

adj.连续的，联贯的，始终一贯的

参考例句：

• It has rained for four consecutive days.已连续下了四天雨。
• The policy of our Party is consecutive.我党的政策始终如一。

8 inclement   

adj.严酷的，严厉的，恶劣的

参考例句：

• The inclement weather brought forth a host of diseases.恶劣的天气引起了种种疾病。
• They kept on going,even through the inclement weather.即使天气恶劣，他们还是执意要去。

9 wreak   

v.发泄；报复

参考例句：

• She had a burning desire to wreak revenge.她复仇心切。
• Timid people always wreak their peevishness on the gentle.怯懦的人总是把满腹牢骚向温和的人发泄。

10 havoc   

n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱

参考例句：

• The earthquake wreaked havoc on the city.地震对这个城市造成了大破坏。
• This concentration of airborne firepower wrought havoc with the enemy forces.这次机载火力的集中攻击给敌军造成很大破坏。

11 densely   

ad.密集地；浓厚地

参考例句：

• A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
• We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。

12 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

13 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

14 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

15 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

16 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。

17 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

18 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

19 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

20 disturbance   

n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调

参考例句：

• He is suffering an emotional disturbance.他的情绪受到了困扰。
• You can work in here without any disturbance.在这儿你可不受任何干扰地工作。

21 looms   

n.织布机( loom的名词复数 )v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的第三人称单数 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• All were busily engaged,men at their ploughs,women at their looms. 大家都很忙，男的耕田，女的织布。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The factory has twenty-five looms. 那家工厂有25台织布机。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 uncertainties   

无把握( uncertainty的名词复数 )； 不确定； 变化不定； 无把握、不确定的事物

参考例句：

• One of the uncertainties of military duty is that you never know when you might suddenly get posted away. 任军职不稳定的因素之一是你永远不知道什么时候会突然被派往它处。
• Uncertainties affecting peace and development are on the rise. 影响和平与发展的不确定因素在增加。 来自汉英非文学 - 十六大报告