voa标准英语2008年-Ukrainian Business - East or West?

Ukraine lies in the geographic¹ center of Europe, which gives the former Soviet² republic the option of orienting its economy toward Russia and the east, or the European Union and the west. VOA Correspondent Peter Fedynsky recently visited both ends of the former Soviet republic and reports on some of the realities that may determine where and how well Ukraine does most of its business.

The market and business have no nationality or borders, says this western Ukrainian businessman.

Nor do they have any smell, adds a smiling eastern Ukrainian counterpart. And both agree that money is money.

Yevhen Bisovsky earns his money as director of the RosanPak Packaging Company in the western city of Lviv. Nearly 30 percent of RosanPak's $40 million annual turnover³ is in Russia.
　

Konti Confection Company

Oleh Lohvinov is director of the Konti Confection Company in the eastern city of Donetsk.

Konti's $90 million sales in Russia in the first half of 2008 slightly exceeded those in Ukraine.

Lohvinov says Konti's priority is to expand in Ukraine, Russia, China and other post-Soviet markets, instead of the European Union.
　

Oleh Lohvinov

Lohvinov says the European market has long been saturated⁴ and stabilized⁵, adding that it takes colossal⁶ amounts of capital to establish and distribute a brand in the European market.

The businessman notes there are a number of countries where he can spend less and get a better result.

High-speed machines at RosanPak mold various types of containers for cakes, ice cream or anything a producer may want to package in plastic.
　

Yevhen Bisovsky

Director Yevhen Bisovsky says less than one-fourth of the company's sales are in the European Union. He adds that the so-called Shengen Customs Zone, the strict EU border-control arrangement, makes it difficult for Ukrainian business to expand westward⁷.

For a RosanPak employee to head west, says Bisovsky, he needs a visa; initially⁸ for a month, then three months, and half a year.

The businessman says there is no such thing as a five-year Shengen Zone visa, which would allow a RosanPak representative to enter and work the EU market. Instead, he needs an invitation, and must wait in very long lines at consulates⁹ each time.
　

Employees at the RosanPak Packaging Company in the western city of Lviv, Ukraine

Trucks that deliver cargo¹⁰ to the European Union often get stuck for days at Ukraine's western borders because of the lack of streamlined customs procedures and a shortage of crossing points.
　

Anatoly Ruchka

Ukrainian truck driver Anatoly Ruchka of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast has driven in both directions. He agrees with the assessment¹¹ of businesspeople, who give roads in the West high marks compared to those in Ukraine and Russia.

Ruchka also notes how well roads in the West are maintained, how clean they are and how well drivers are treated. In Russia, he says, Ukrainian drivers are also referred to in the pejorative¹² "khokhol," unlike the West where drivers are treated equally regardless of their nationality."
　

Some Ukrainians fear Russian investment will also bring unwelcome

Yuri Pukalsky

Russian cultural influence to the country. Yuri Pukalsky, vice¹³ president of the Lviv Chamber¹⁴ of Commerce, says that may happen, but should not be feared.

Pukalsky says Ukrainians themselves should become stronger, and then Russian influences will not be so frightening. That way, he adds, Russian money will work for the Ukrainian economy, but he repeats - it is up to Ukrainians to become stronger.
　

Hennadi Chizhikov

Pukalsky's counterpart in Donetsk, Hennadi Chizhikov, says Ukrainian businesspeople are doing just that, not only recognizing Russian competition, but developing a sense of national identity to meet foreign competitors head on.

Chizhikov says he likes the fact that Ukrainian retailers¹⁵ are beginning to form associations. He calls that an example of emerging civil society in Ukraine.

But a lot remains¹⁶ to be done before Ukrainian business is fully¹⁷ able to compete, not least of which is the enactment¹⁸ of economic reforms now stymied¹⁹ by political infighting in Kyiv, as struggles between the president and prime minister spill over into a parliament that cannot pass much-needed legislation.

1 geographic   

adj.地理学的，地理的

参考例句：

• The city's success owes much to its geographic position. 这座城市的成功很大程度上归功于它的地理位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Environmental problems pay no heed to these geographic lines. 环境问题并不理会这些地理界限。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

2 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

3 turnover   

n.人员流动率，人事变动率；营业额，成交量

参考例句：

• The store greatly reduced the prices to make a quick turnover.这家商店实行大减价以迅速周转资金。
• Our turnover actually increased last year.去年我们的营业额竟然增加了。

4 saturated   

a.饱和的，充满的

参考例句：

• The continuous rain had saturated the soil. 连绵不断的雨把土地淋了个透。
• a saturated solution of sodium chloride 氯化钠饱和溶液

5 stabilized   

v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The patient's condition stabilized. 患者的病情稳定下来。
• His blood pressure has stabilized. 他的血压已经稳定下来了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

6 colossal   

adj.异常的，庞大的

参考例句：

• There has been a colossal waste of public money.一直存在巨大的公款浪费。
• Some of the tall buildings in that city are colossal.那座城市里的一些高层建筑很庞大。

7 westward   

n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西

参考例句：

• We live on the westward slope of the hill.我们住在这座山的西山坡。
• Explore westward or wherever.向西或到什么别的地方去勘探。

8 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

9 consulates   

n.领事馆( consulate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Consulates General of The People's Republic at Los Angeles. 中华人民共和国驻洛杉矶总领事馆。 来自互联网
• The country's embassies, consulates and other diplomatic missions stationed in other countries. （七）家驻外使馆、馆和其他外交代表机构。 来自互联网

10 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

11 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

12 pejorative   

adj.贬低的，轻蔑的

参考例句：

• In the context of ethnic tourism,commercialization often has a pejorative connotation.摘要在民族旅游语境中，商品化经常带有贬义色彩。
• But news organizations also should make every effort to keep the discussion civil and to discourage the dissemination of falsehoods or pejorat

13 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

14 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

15 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

16 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

17 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

18 enactment   

n.演出，担任…角色；制订，通过

参考例句：

• Enactment refers to action.演出指行为的表演。
• We support the call for the enactment of a Bill of Rights.我们支持要求通过《权利法案》的呼声。

19 stymied   

n.被侵袭的v.妨碍，阻挠( stymie的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Relief efforts have been stymied in recent weeks by armed gunmen. 最近几周的救援工作一直受到武装分子的阻挠。 来自辞典例句
• I was completely stymied by her refusal to help. 由于她拒不相助， 我完全陷入了困境。 来自互联网