Greenspan Predicts US Job Growth Soon

Greenspan Predicts US Job Growth Soon

 

Barry Woods

 

U.S. central bank chief Alan Greenspan told a congressional committee Thursday that the United States must resist protectionism.

 

Mr. Greenspan told the House Education Committee that the U.S. economy is best served by full and vigorous engagement in the global economy. Trade protectionism, he said, would hurt America by inviting¹ retaliation² from foreign countries.

 

Mr. Greenspan said he expects the economy will soon begin creating jobs at a faster pace. Last month, only 2,100 jobs were created, far fewer than had been expected. The loss of U.S. jobs to lower wage countries has become a major issue in the presidential election campaign.

 

Mr. Greenspan called for improvements in the U.S. educational system, a change he said is essential to assuring future economic success. "Clearly, we are not doing enough to move students through the educational system with a faster level of skill accretion³," he said. "Because, as I point out in my prepared remarks, it is reflected in these very dramatic changes in the so-called college-high-school skill spreads, which have opened up quite materially."

 

The central bank chief was referring to falling international rankings of U.S. high school students in science and mathematics.

 

Mr. Greenspan said the U.S. labor⁴ market is flexible and that other countries are trying to emulate⁵ the U.S. model. He mentioned France, where a reduction in the work week to 35 hours has eroded⁶ the competitiveness of French workers.

 

"The work-week in France, which was expected to have some considerable difficulty in maintaining a flexible labor market, is being recognized as such [a problem]," he said.

 

Mr. Greenspan said both France and Germany are seeking to cut back the strict work rules and generous unemployment benefits that have contributed to work place rigidities.

 

 

注释：

central bank chief  中央银行行长

congressional [kEn5^reFEnEl] adj. 国会的

protectionism [prE5tekF(E)nIz(E)m] n. 保护主义

House Education Committee （美国）教育局，隶属联邦内务部

vigorous [5vi^ErEs] adj. 精力旺盛的

retaliation [rI9tAlI5eIFLn] n. 报复，报仇

accretion [A5kri:FEn] n. 增长

dramatic [drE5mAtik] adj. 戏剧性的

materially [mE5tiEriEli] adv. 本质上， 重大

emulate [5emjuleit] v. 仿效

eroded [i5rEud] vt. 腐蚀，使变化

rigidity⁷ [ri5dViditi] n. 僵化，刻板

1 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

2 retaliation   

n.报复，反击

参考例句：

• retaliation against UN workers 对联合国工作人员的报复
• He never said a single word in retaliation. 他从未说过一句反击的话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 accretion   

n.自然的增长，增加物

参考例句：

• Every culture is an accretion.每一种文化都是长期积淀的结果。
• An accretion of sediment at the mouth of the river caused serious flooding.河口堆积物的增加导致河水严重泛滥。

4 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。

5 emulate   

v.努力赶上或超越，与…竞争；效仿

参考例句：

• You must work hard to emulate your sister.你必须努力工作，赶上你姐姐。
• You must look at the film and try to emulate his behavior.你们必须观看这部电影，并尽力模仿他的动作。

6 eroded   

adj. 被侵蚀的，有蚀痕的 动词erode的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The cliff face has been steadily eroded by the sea. 峭壁表面逐渐被海水侵蚀。
• The stream eroded a channel in the solid rock. 小溪在硬石中侵蚀成一条水道。

7 rigidity   

adj.钢性，坚硬

参考例句：

• The rigidity of the metal caused it to crack.这金属因刚度强而产生裂纹。
• He deplored the rigidity of her views.他痛感她的观点僵化。