VOA标准英语2013--Bernanke Offers Mixed Economic Outlook For US

Bernanke Offers Mixed Economic Outlook For US

Despite a strong pickup¹ in manufacturing and a much-improved housing market, the outlook for the US economy remains² mixed. The Federal Reserve said U.S. growth is unlikely to exceed 2.8 percent in 2013. 

On the other hand, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke expects U.S. unemployment will fall faster than expected - to as low as 7.3 percent by the end of this year.

"Private payrolls³ are growing more quickly, total hours have increased, the rate of filings and new claims for unemployment insurance has fallen, and the unemployment rate has continued to tick down," Bernanke said.

But persistent⁴ concerns about government spending cuts, tax hikes, and new signs of instability in Europe continue to weigh on the central bank. As a result, the Fed plans to keep its $85 billion a month bond buying program to keep long-term interest rates near zero. The low rates have contributed to an extended winning streak⁵ on Wall Street.

"The stock market right now is really addicted⁶ to this Fed stimulus⁷. I mean if the Fed had given any indication that they were thinking of scaling back the stimulus, the stock market would have sold off very sharply, but instead the market is up," said Greg McBride at Bankrate.com

McBride says that's because low interest rates encourage spending and investments in riskier⁸ assets. While low rates can help boost economic growth, they can also fuel inflation.

Barring a sharp increase in prices, the Fed expects to keep interest rates low until the jobless rate falls to 6.5 percent.

Most experts say that's not likely to happen until at least 2015. 

1 pickup   

n.拾起，获得

参考例句：

• I would love to trade this car for a pickup truck.我愿意用这辆汽车换一辆小型轻便卡车。||The luck guy is a choice pickup for the girls.那位幸运的男孩是女孩子们想勾搭上的人。

2 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。

3 payrolls   

n.（公司员工的）工资名单( payroll的名词复数 )；（公司的）工资总支出，工薪总额

参考例句：

• Indices of employment, payrolls, and production steadied in February 1931931年2月，就业、工资额和生产指数稳定。 来自辞典例句
• Wall Street responded to the payrolls figures with gusto. 华尔街对就业数据作出了积极的反应。 来自互联网

4 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

5 streak   

n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动

参考例句：

• The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。
• Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

6 addicted   

adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的

参考例句：

• He was addicted to heroin at the age of 17.他17岁的时候对海洛因上了瘾。
• She's become addicted to love stories.她迷上了爱情小说。

7 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。

8 riskier   

冒险的，危险的( risky的比较级 )

参考例句：

• Now they are starting to demand higher returns on riskier assets. 而今他们开始在风险更高的资产上要求更高的回报。
• The problem with that: RIM's business is getting riskier every quarter. 不过问题也随之而来：RIM面临的业务风险正逐季增大。