NPR 2008-10-17

Wall Street reversed yesterday's course and today ended trading up more than 400 points. Investors¹ were buoyed² by a Labor³ Department report showing the Consumer Price Index steady in September, and oil prices slid to their lowest level in more than a year, falling below 70 dollars a barrel. But signs of a weak economy persist. The Federal Reserve today reports industrial production fell sharply in September, and banks borrowed record amounts of cash from its emergency lending facility.

On Capitol Hill, the Senate Banking⁴ Committee held more hearings on the financial crisis, even though Congress isn't in session. NPR's Debbie Elliott reports.

Former US Comptroller of the Currency Eugene Ludwig testified the financial wildfire was sparked by consumerism taken to the extreme. "Home and hearth⁵ became the consumers' ATM machine, as home equity⁶ and other consumer loans leveraged⁷ the American consumer to the hilt." Ludwig and other witnesses said regulators weren't on top of the problem. Former SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt called for a dramatic rethinking of the nation's financial regulatory architecture. "The biggest since the New Deal." he said. Debbie Elliott, NPR News, the Capitol.

Citigroup today reported its fourth consecutive⁹ quarterly loss. The bank said it lost 2.8 billion dollars in the third quarter. Citigroup is writing down bad debt and mortgages valued at more than 51 billion dollars. Not all companies are suffering in this weak economy. Google says today its third quarter profits rose 26 percent, and IBM posted a near 20% quarterly profit.

Alaska Senator Ted⁸ Stevens took the witness stand today at his corruption¹⁰ trial. The Senate's longest serving Republican is charged with lying on financial disclosure forms to conceal¹¹ 250,000 dollars in gifts and services from an oil industry executive. NPR's Nina Totenberg has details.

Stevens immediately faced three rapid-fire questions from defense¹³ lawyer Brendan Sullivan. "When you signed those financial disclosure forms, did you believe them to be accurate and truthful¹⁴?" "Yes, Sir.", replied Stevens in a firm voice. "Did you intentionally¹⁵ file false financial disclosure forms?" "No, I did not." "Did you ever scheme to conceal anything from the Senate?" "No, Sir.", said Stevens. With that denial behind him, Stevens went on to tell the jury about his hardscrabble Depression-era background, his two Distinguished¹⁶ Flying Crosses in World War II, his life in public service, including a leading role in winning statehood for Alaska, and his seven elections to the US Senate. Tomorrow comes the detailed¹⁷ rebuttal of the charges against him and cross examination. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington.

A closer look at Wall Street today, the Dow closed up 401 points at 8979. The NASDAQ Composite was up 89 points at 1717. The S&P closed up 38.

This is NPR News.

Illinois authorities are removing wreckage¹⁸ in suburban¹⁹ Chicago where a medical helicopter crashed last night. Chicago Public Radio's Susie An has the story. 

The three-member crew of the Air Angels Helicopter Company was transporting a one-year-old girl to a hospital in Chicago when the accident happened. Authority say the chopper appeared to have clipped a wire on a radio tower before going down. The helicopter crashed in a vacant field just about 50 miles west of its destination. No one aboard survived. Officials from the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the cause of the crash. This is the 11th medical helicopter crash in 2008, and it's the sixth one involving fatalities²⁰. For NPR News, I'm Susie An in Chicago.

A powerful earthquake struck southern Mexico near the Guatemalan border this afternoon. Residents fled shaking homes but officials say there have been no immediate¹² reports of damage or injuries. The quake measured at Magnitude 6.5 and was centered in Mexico's southern Chiapas state.

The Bush administration is trying to round up support for a draft agreement with Iraq that governs the ongoing²¹ presence of US troops there. The current UN mandate²² expires at the end of this year. The draft status of forces agreement needs to be approved by Iraq's parliament, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been calling on Iraqi politicians to support it. The proposed mandate includes a target withdrawal²³ date of December 31st, 2011, and it gives Iraq some authority to try US personnel accused of committing crimes off-base and off-duty.

1 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

2 buoyed   

v.使浮起( buoy的过去式和过去分词 )；支持；为…设浮标；振奋…的精神

参考例句：

• Buoyed by their win yesterday the team feel confident of further success. 在昨天胜利的鼓舞下，该队有信心再次获胜。
• His encouragement buoyed her up during that difficult period. 他的鼓励使她在那段困难时期恢复了乐观的情绪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

5 hearth   

n.壁炉炉床，壁炉地面

参考例句：

• She came and sat in a chair before the hearth.她走过来，在炉子前面的椅子上坐下。
• She comes to the hearth,and switches on the electric light there.她走到壁炉那里，打开电灯。

6 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

7 leveraged   

促使…改变( leverage的过去式和过去分词 )； [美国英语]杠杆式投机，（使）举债经营，（使）利用贷款进行投机

参考例句：

• Chrysler has traditionally been a highly leveraged company. 克莱斯勒一向是一家周转十分灵活的公司。
• Leveraged recaps have become popular for a number of reasons. 杠杆资本重组的大行其道有好几个原因。

8 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

9 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。

10 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

11 conceal   

v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽

参考例句：

• He had to conceal his identity to escape the police.为了躲避警方，他只好隐瞒身份。
• He could hardly conceal his joy at his departure.他几乎掩饰不住临行时的喜悦。

12 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。

13 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

14 truthful   

adj.真实的，说实话的，诚实的

参考例句：

• You can count on him for a truthful report of the accident.你放心，他会对事故作出如实的报告的。
• I don't think you are being entirely truthful.我认为你并没全讲真话。

15 intentionally   

ad.故意地，有意地

参考例句：

• I didn't say it intentionally. 我是无心说的。
• The local authority ruled that he had made himself intentionally homeless and was therefore not entitled to be rehoused. 当地政府裁定他是有意居无定所，因此没有资格再获得提供住房。

16 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

17 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

18 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

19 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

20 fatalities   

n.恶性事故( fatality的名词复数 )；死亡；致命性；命运

参考例句：

• Several people were injured, but there were no fatalities. 有几个人受伤，但没有人死亡。
• The accident resulted in fatalities. 那宗意外道致多人死亡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

22 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

23 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。