2017年雅思阅读文章《汇丰银行缩减运营成本》

　　雅思的阅读理解出题内容广泛，唯一可以确定的就是会涉及一些重要的社会现实新闻。下面为大家送上一篇2017年雅思阅读文章，欢迎阅读。

　　One of the world's biggest banks, HSBC, has announced the first details of a major cost-cutting exercise. It's to sell its businesses in Brazil and Turkey, reduce its asset base and shrink its investment bank. Kamal Ahmed reports.

　　“Europe's largest bank has announced that it wants to be significantly smaller. HSBC has revealed that its UK operations will be hit hard as it battles to find over 3.2 billion pounds of cost-savings. Stuart Gulliver, the bank's chief executive, said that it was time to recognize the world had changed, and the growth in Asia had to be the new focus. The bank is selling businesses in Turkey and Brazil, and will look to reduce the value of its risky assets by 290 billion pounds. HSBC also said that it will make a decision on whether it will retain its headquarters in London by the end of the year.”

　　The Islamic State group has created a network of booby-traps, tunnels and barricades in Mosul to defend the Iraqi city against an offensive by government forces. A BBC investigation into life there one year after its capture by IS has found that the group now controls most aspects of life, from dress codes to schools, which residents say have been used to indoctrinate children. Mahmud spoke to the BBC.

　　“I came home one day and saw my little brother drawing their Islamic State's flag and humming one of their chants. I went crazy, I took the drawing and tore it to pieces. We immediately removed him from school, as we'd rather he has no education at all than one such as IS is trying to spread. I’ve come to the conclusion that the goal of this organization is to plant the seed of violence, hate and sectarianism into children's minds.”

　　The Hong Kong government has issued a red alert against travel to South Korea because of the outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome there. The warning advises against all non-essential travel, and indicates that the authorities believe visiting South Korea could pose a significant threat. The Health Ministry in Seoul says that seven people have now died from the outbreak of the respiratory disease.

　　A judge in the United States has ordered the release of Albert Woodfox, the last of the so-called “Angola Three” still in prison. Woodfox has been in solitary confinement for 43 years after the killing of a guard at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in 1972. Richard Hulls reports.

　　“Campaigners for the ‘Angola Three’ have always maintained there was no physical evidence to link them to the crime and all convictions have been overturned on numerous occasions. In his ruling, the judge said Albert Woodfox's poor health and the length of the time spent in solitary confinement had contributed to the decision to free him. No man in the US has ever spent as much time in solitary confinement as he has. With the exception of a six-month period in a secure dormitory in 2008, Albert Woodfox has spent all of the past 43 years incarcerated on his own.”

　　词汇解释：

　　1.booby-trap n.饵雷 v.在微开的门上放一东西以惊打来人;设诡雷，布陷阱

　　Police were checking the area for booby traps.

　　警察在这一地区搜索饵雷。

　　2.indoctrinate vt. 灌输;教导

　　They have been completely indoctrinated.

　　他们完全被洗脑了。

　　3.sectarianism n. 宗派主义;教派意识

　　He condemned religious sectarianism.

　　他谴责宗派主义。

　　4.red alert 紧急警报，红色警报;应急状况

　　All the St. Louis hospitals are on red alert.