经济衰退 母亲节消费降温

 　　The economy is still in a recession and for the second consecutive¹ year, Mom is taking a hit on Mother's Day.

　　US consumers will spend $123.89 on average on Mother's Day, down more than 10 percent from a year ago, according to a survey released on Thursday by the National Retail² Federation³.

　　That follows a dip to $138.63 in 2008 from $139.14 in 2007, according to the survey, which was conducted by market research firm BIGresearch.

　　Mother's Day falls on May 10 this year.

　　Most people -- 66.8 percent -- will buy flowers for their mothers, while 54.8 percent will treat Mom to a special outing like dinner or brunch⁴, the survey said.

　　Spending on that special outing is expected to total $2.7 billion, with jewelry⁵ spending coming in next at $2.3 billion, the survey said.

　　Where are people likely to shop for Mom? About 30 percent of those surveyed said they would purchase a gift from a discount store, while 27.2 percent said they would go to their favorite department store. Also, 33 percent said they would go to a specialty⁶ store like a florist⁷, gift shop or electronics store.

　　The survey of 8,667 consumers was conducted March 31 through April 7.

1 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。

2 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。

3 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

4 brunch   

n.早午餐

参考例句：

• They eat much the same thing for brunch every day.每天早午餐他们总是吃同样的东西。
• What did you have for your brunch?你早午饭都吃些什么？

5 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

6 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。

7 florist   

n.花商；种花者

参考例句：

• The florist bunched the flowers up.花匠把花捆成花束。
• Could you stop at that florist shop over there?劳驾在那边花店停一下好不好？