VOA标准英语2012--IMF Optimistic About Global Economic Growth

IMF Optimistic About Global Economic Growth

The IMF says the U.S. job market is starting to show signs of life, factory output is up sharply from recessionary lows and American consumers are spending more. 

There's also good news from Europe, where coordinated¹ efforts by the European Union may have eliminated the threat of a Greek default and lowered borrowing costs in other high debt countries. 

But IMF chief economist² Olivier Blanchard says the global economic picture is complicated. "Things have quieted down since but an uneasy calm remains³. One has the feeling that at any moment, things could well get very bad again," he said. 

Analysts⁴ point to Spain as a potential risk. Yields for Spanish bonds have doubled since March on speculation⁵ that Europe's fourth largest economy might seek financial support. But William Hobbs from VP Research says that's an unlikely scenario⁶. "Spain is not Greece. Spain has a viable⁷, albeit⁸ open-to-reform economy, and they have globally-respected businesses and generally an economy which we think will eventually see it through these dark times to come," he said. 

The IMF sees promise in developing economies, particularly those in Asia, which are projected to grow 7.5 percent this year. China's growth will likely slow slightly to 8.2 percent. But the pace is expected to accelerate in the Middle East and North Africa as oil prices continue to rise. 

Improvements are also seen in sub-Saharan Africa and South Africa, where economic output is likely to expand 5 and a half percent. Still, Olivier Blanchard of the IMF sees reason for caution. "For many countries, the challenges come mainly from the outside in the form of lower exports to advanced countries because of the low growth there, of the volatility⁹ of commodity prices which affects both exporters and importers and the high volatility of capital flows," he said. 

The IMF report comes as the 187-nation institution and its sister lending organization, the World Bank, prepare to hold annual spring meetings in Washington.

1 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

2 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

3 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。

4 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

5 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

6 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

7 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

8 albeit   

conj.即使；纵使；虽然

参考例句：

• Albeit fictional,she seemed to have resolved the problem.虽然是虚构的，但是在她看来好象是解决了问题。
• Albeit he has failed twice,he is not discouraged.虽然失败了两次，但他并没有气馁。

9 volatility   

n.挥发性，挥发度，轻快，（性格）反复无常

参考例句：

• That was one reason why volatility was so low last year.这也是去年波动性如此低的原因之一。
• Yet because volatility remained low for so long,disaster myopia prevailed.然而，由于相当长的时间里波动性小，灾难短视就获胜了。