American and international financial markets are welcoming word that the U.S. government is taking over two troubled institutions that back roughly half the country's home mortgages. The Bush administration says it took the action reluctantly to head off a fiscal crisis.
美国和国际金融市场都对布什政府接管房利美和房地美做出了积极的反应。这两家陷入困境的美国房贷融资机构担负着美国大约一半的房屋抵押贷款。布什政府星期一表示，为了避免一场财政危机，政府接管两房其实是不得已而为之。
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are entities created by Congress to finance and guarantee home loans in the United States. While they are government-licensed, they operate like private companies with shareholders and corporate boards.
房利美和房地美是美国国会授权成立的两个机构，专门为美国的房屋抵押贷款提供融资和担保。尽管这两家公司得到政府授权，但是在运作上却跟私人公司一样，既有一般持股人，也有公司董事会。
The two mortgage giants have been severely weakened by the current turmoil in the U.S. housing market, which has seen a dramatic rise in foreclosures, and falling home values across the country.
在目前的美国房地产市场大滑坡中，由于房贷违约率急剧上升，丧失住房赎回权的人数大增，全国各地的房地产价值大幅缩水，这两家房贷巨头损失惨重。
Should they fail, the impact on the U.S. and world economy could be severe. And so the government stepped in - bailing them out and taking over their operations.
如果听任房利美和房地美破产倒闭，那对美国和世界经济造成的影响将是严重的。所以美国政府出手挽救，接管了这两家公司。
White House spokeswoman Dana Perino says the Bush administration had no choice. "This is not action that we wanted to take. It is action that we needed to take," she said.
白宫发言人达纳·佩里诺说，布什政府别无选择。她说：“这并不是我们愿意采取的行动。而是我们必需采取的行动。”
Perino says the White House has been warning for years that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were in need of reform. She says the federal takeover could have been prevented if Congress had acted on the administration's request for a strong independent regulator to oversee the mortgage giants. "Remember that we have highlighted the systemic risk posed by posed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac because of the very large role they play on housing markets and because of their business practices," she said.
佩里诺指出，多年来，白宫一直警告说，房利美和房地美需要改革。她表示，布什政府曾要求国会设立一个强有力的独立监管机构来监督两房的运作。假如国会按照布什政府的要求采取了行动，联邦政府完全可以避免接管这两家房贷巨头。她说：“可记得，我们一直强调房利美和房地美造成的体制性风险，因为他们在房地产市场发挥的作用太大，他们的商业行为风险太高。”
Perino says it will be up to the next U.S. president and Congress to decide the ultimate fate of the two institutions. She says for now, the goal must be to help the housing market, and the economy, recover.
至于这两家公司的最终命运，佩里诺说，那就要等美国的下届总统和下届国会去决定了。而现在，主要的目标必需是帮助房地产市场和整个美国经济复苏。
Perino says that President Bush, who does not favor corporate bail-outs as a rule, approved this takeover reluctantly as a last resort.
佩里诺还说，布什总统通常并不赞成政府对公司实行拯救。这一次他也是在最后一刻才不情愿地批准接管两房。
U.S., Asian and European stock markets soared in response to the takeover. China and Japan, the biggest buyers of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae debt, praised the move.
美国、亚洲和欧洲的股票市场都对美国政府接管两房反应积极，股价大幅上扬。中国和日本这两个购买两房债券最多的国家都对美国政府的接管行动表示赞赏。
But European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet offered a word of caution. He said while the move is welcome, risks remain in the global credit market.
不过，欧洲央行行长特里谢告诫人们还是要谨慎小心。他说，虽然华盛顿的接管措施很受欢迎，但是全球信贷市场上的风险依然存在。 |