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考研英语阅读：经济类
引言：考研英语阅读是否很难?小编可以给大家一个回答：会者不难。下面是小编整合的一些经济类阅读理解精讲，希望大家通过不断的练习可以提高做题效率而不再惧怕英语阅读。
1. Currency teaser
A strong rupee is giving policymakers a new sort of headache
THE Indian finance ministry's mid-year review, released this week, sees the external sector as a silver lining around the country's huge fiscal deficit. "For most of the past decade, the nominal value of the rupee has been allowed to decline gently against the dollar, by about 5% a year, thus staying fairly steady in real terms. This year, however, it has been appreciating in real terms (and, since June, nominally as well). It would have done so more sharply had the central bank not been buying dollars with gusto. Exporters of manufactured goods, obsessed with price competition from China, are aghast at the rise--and at the prospect held out by some forecasters that a sustained boom in India's IT exports means it will continue.
The rupee's recent strength is only partly related to India's prowess in software and the mushrooming of "business-process outsourcing" in such projects as call-centres. The chunky surplus on invisibles owes more to remittances: non-resident Indians, attracted by the stability of the rupee and its higher interest rates, have been moving their offshore deposits back home. Similarly, Indian companies are borrowing more in dollars without selling rupees forward to hedge repayments. The trade deficit, meanwhile, has been shrinking, as imports grow slowly.
The inflows have boosted foreign-exchange reserves by some $20 billion this year, to $66 billion, or 12 months'-worth of imports. The size of this cushion has triggered some calls for further liberalisation of the labyrinthine foreign-exchange controls that India still maintains, despite the move in 1993 towards rupee convertibility for trade purposes. In recent months, some controls have duly been eased. It is now simpler, for example, for individuals to open foreign-currency bank accounts, and for travellers to get hold of foreign exchange. And non-resident Indians have been allowed to take out money acquired through inheritance, or from rents and dividends.
Some commentators have taken all this as a harbinger of full capital-account convertibility. That is not on the cards. The experience of 1991, when India ran out of money, has left the central bank prone to caution--an approach it felt was vindicated by the East Asian crisis of 1997-98. With war in Iraq looming and a turbulent oil market, some risk aversion is understandable. India's fiscal deficit--some 10% of GDP and widening--is another reason for moving slowly. Just as one rating agency, Moody's, is considering upgrading India's external debt, another, Fitch, has warned that its local-currency rating is under threat. Nor is it certain that opening the capital account would mean a weaker rupee. It might even attract more capital inflows. As India's exporters are learning, convertibility is a two-way street.
Economist; 12/7/2002, Vol. 365 Issue 8302, p73, 1/3p
注(1)：本文选自Economist;12/7/2002, p73, 1/3p;
注(2)：本文习题命题模仿2002年真题text 2第2题(1)，text 5第3题(2)，1995年真题text 2第4题(3)，2000年真题text 4第3题(4)和1998年真题text 2第4题(5);
1.The expression “silver lining” (Line 2, Paragraph 1) most probably means______.
[A] a side effect
[B] a favorable aspect
[C] a decorative line
[D] a comforting prospect
2.According to the text, the appreciation of the rupee in real terms__________.
[A] will lower its nominal value
[B] is bad news to exporters of manufactured goods
[C] means a sharper decline of its nominal value against the dollar
[D] will give impetus to the development of India’s IT industry
3.The current account surplus owes to the following EXCEPT_________.
[A] the strength of the rupee
[B] the remittances of non-resident Indians
[C] the hedging activity of Indian companies
[D] the growing imports
4.Which of the following is true according to the text?
[A] India’s foreign exchange reserves increased more than three times this year.
[B] Individuals are now allowed to trade foreign currency freely.
[C] India now can tackle adverse events in the foreign exchange market better
[D] India’s foreign exchange controls are seen as a hamper to its economic development.
5.Which of the follow is NOT a reason for India’s slow response to calls for liberalization
of its foreign exchange?
[A] Its increasing foreign reserve.
[B] Its past experience.
[C] Uncertainty of the oil market.
[D] Its growing fiscal deficit.
答案：D B D C A
篇章剖析
本篇文章是一篇说明文，针对印度外汇储备增加，卢比走强是否会对印度的外汇管制政策产生影响进行了分析。第一段介绍了印度外汇储备增加，卢比走强的财政情况，并提出本文主要观点：印度也许并不会大幅放开对外汇的管制。第二段介绍了卢比升值的情况。第三段介绍了卢比升值带来的影响---外汇流入。第四段介绍了外汇储备增加的情况以及政府适度放松外汇管制。第五段分析了政府不会大幅放开外汇管制的原因，并得出自己的结论：外币兑换是一条双行道。
词汇注释
silver lining: 一线希望
buoyant: [5bCiEnt] adj. 趋于上升的(价格)
rupee: [5ru:pi:] n. 卢比(印度、巴基斯坦等国的货币)
liberalization: [7libErElai5zeiFEn] n. 自由化; 放宽限制
nominal: [5nCminl] adj. 属于、关于或是一笔钱或者股票证券的票面价值量的
appreciate: [E5pri:Fieit] v. 增值, 涨价
gusto: [5^QstEu] n. 兴致勃勃;热情
aghast: [E5^B:st] adj. 惊骇的, 吓呆的
prowess: [5praJIs] n. 卓越的技能;杰出的才能;本领
mushrooming: [5mQFrumiN] n. 迅速增长, 激烈增殖
outsourcing: [`aJt9sR:sIN] n. [商]外部采办,外购
chunky: [5tFQNki] adj. 结实的;厚实的
remittance: [ri5mitEns] n. 汇款, 汇寄之款, 汇款额
offshore: [5C(:)fFC:] adj. 海外的，国外的
hedge: [hedV] n. 保值措施，套期保值
cushion: [5kuFEn] n. 缓冲减轻或缓和不利后果的东西
labyrinthine: [9lAbE`rInWaIn] adj. 迷宫(似)的, 曲折的
convertibility: [kEn9v\:tE`bIlEtI] n. 可兑换性
dividend: [5dividend] n. 股息, 红利
harbinger: [5hB:bindVE] n. 先驱, 预兆
prone: [prEun] adj. 倾向于
vindicate: [5vindikeit] v. 证明…正当
loom: [lu:m] v. 隐现, 迫近
turbulent: [5tE:bjulEnt] adj. 动荡的;难控制的
aversion: [E5vE:FEn] n. 指转向或转移的行为
难句突破
1. The size of this cushion has triggered some calls for further liberalisation of the labyrinthine foreign-exchange controls that India still maintains, despite the move in 1993 towards rupee convertibility for trade purposes.
主体句式：The size of this cushion has triggered some calls…
结构分析：这一句虽然也包含一个定语从句，但结构并不算太复杂，容易造成理解困难的是cushion, labyrinthine这两个词。Cushion原意是“垫子”，这里引申为“缓冲不利后果的东西;保障”，labyrinthine的意思是“复杂的;迷宫般的”。
句子译文：尽管在1993年印度已允许进行以贸易为目的的卢比兑换，但印度目前的外汇控制如迷宫般复杂。现在有了这样的巨额储备作保障，一些人开始呼吁印度政府进一步放开现有外汇控制。
2. The experience of 1991, when India ran out of money, has left the central bank prone to caution--an approach it felt was vindicated by the East Asian crisis of 1997-98.
主体句式：The experience…has left the central bank prone to caution.
结构分析：这个句子是个复杂句，句中有一个以when引导的，修饰1991的定语从句和一个省略了that的，修饰approach的定语从句。
句子译文：1991年印度用完外汇储备的经历使中央银行倾向于谨慎方式—1997-98年的东亚危机证实了这种方式的正确性。
题目分析
1. 答案为D，属猜词题。根据上下文，印度的财政赤字非常大，但印度的外汇储备不断增加，并且连续三个季度的经常项目账户盈余，显然，对外部门给巨额财政赤字带来了一线希望。四个选项中，只有A的意义最符合。
2. 答案为B，属事实细节题。文章第二段制造品出口商听到卢比升值消息时的反应是“aghast”，这个词的意思是“吃惊的;吓呆的”，可见这条消息对他们来说是坏消息。
3. 答案为D，属事实细节题。文章第三段指出了印度经常项目账户盈余的几个原因：卢比的强势，海外印度人的汇款，印度公司为了套期保值而借入美元却不卖出卢比的行为，以及贸易赤字的缩小。而贸易赤字缩小的原因是进口增长缓慢。所以进口的不断增长不是导致经常项目账户盈余的原因。
4. 答案为C，属事实细节题。根据文章第四段第二行，印度外汇储备的大幅增加到660亿美元，因此一些人认为印度已经有了一个可以放心开放外汇控制的cushion。这个词的意思是“缓冲不利影响的东西”，显然现在的印度能够更从容地应付外汇市场的不利情况。
5. 答案为A，属事实细节题。根据上下文，人们呼吁印度放宽外汇控制的原因是印度的外汇储备不断增加，卢比也不断走强。A项中的答案正好因果颠倒了。
参考译文
印度财政部长本周发布了年中报告，报告认为对外部门给该国巨额财政赤字带来了一线希望。‘行情看涨’和‘令人鼓舞’这些词被用来形容1/4世纪以来首次连续三个季度的经常项目账户盈余。随着外汇储备的膨胀和卢比的增强，一些人认为大幅放开印度外汇管制的时候到了。不过他们也许会失望。
在过去十年中的大部分时候，卢比的面值被允许以每年约5%的幅度相对于美元温和地贬值，因此它的实际价值是相当稳定的。然而，在今年，卢比的实际价值一直在升值(而且，自六月以来，其面值也在上扬)。如果不是中央银行一直在积极买入美元，卢比的升值幅度会更高。对饱受中国产品价格竞争困扰的制造品出口商来说，卢比升值的消息令人心惊肉跳。一些预测者认为，由于印度信息产业出口还将持续繁荣，卢比将继续升值。
卢比最近的强势与印度在软件业的实力以及最近兴起的将电话中心等项目的业务流程外包有一定的关系。相当的无形收支项目盈余主要来自汇款：受卢比的稳定性和高利率的吸引，那些旅居他乡的印度人一直在将他们的海外存款汇回家乡。与此类似，印度公司也贷入更多美元，同时不卖出远期卢比以便偿还美元贷款时能够套期保值。在此期间由于进口增长缓慢，贸易赤字也在不断减少。
外汇的流入使得外汇贮备在今年快速增长了大约200亿美元，达到了660亿美元，相当于12个月的进口总额。尽管在1993年印度已允许进行以贸易为目的的卢比兑换，但印度目前的外汇控制如迷宫般复杂。现在有了这样的巨额储备作保障，一些人开始呼吁印度政府进一步放开现有外汇控制。最近几个月来，一些外汇控制已经被适当放松。比如，个人开设外汇银行账户、旅游者持有外汇都比以前要简单很多。此外旅居国外的印度人也可转出遗产继承收入，或租金、利息收入。
一些评论员将上述情况视为资本账户可完全兑换的先兆。然而这个可能性并不大。1991年印度用完外汇储备的经历使中央银行倾向于谨慎方式—1997-98年的东亚危机证实了这种方式的正确性。随着伊拉克战争的临近，以及石油市场的波动，进行一些风险转移是可以理解的。印度的财政赤字—约为GDP的10%且正在扩大—是另一个开放动作缓慢的原因。在穆迪(Moody’s)这个评级机构考虑提升印度外债的等级的同时，另一个评级机构，惠誉(Fitch)则警告说它的本地货币评级处境堪忧。放开资本账户并不一定意味着削弱卢比，说不定它还会吸引更多的资本流入。外币兑换是一条双行道，这一点印度的出口商们也越来越有感触。
2. Fast-food succession
Another change at the top
CHARLIE BELL became chief executive of McDonald's in April. Within a month doctors told him that he had colorectal cancer. After stockmarket hours on NoveMr Bell himself got the top job when Jim Cantalupo died of a heart attack hours before he was due to address a convention of McDonald's franchisees. Mr Cantalupo was a McDonald's veteran brought out of retirement in January 2003 to help remodel the firm after sales began falling because of dirty restaurants, indifferent service and growing concern about junk food. He devised a recovery plan, backed by massive marketing, and promoted Mr Bell to chief operating officer. When Mr Cantalupo died, a rapidly convened board confirmed Mr Bell, a 44-year-old Australian already widely seen as his heir apparent, in the top job. The convention got its promised chief executive's address, from the firm's first non-American leader.
Yet within weeks executives had to think about what to do if Mr Bell became too ill to continue. Perhaps Mr Bell had the same thing on his mind: he usually introduced Jim Skinner, the 60-year-old vice-chairman, to visitors as the "steady hand at the wheel". Now Mr Skinner (pictured), an expert on the firm's overseas operations, becomes chief executive, and Mike Roberts, head of its American operations, joins the board as chief operating officer.
Is Mr Roberts now the new heir apparent? Maybe. McDonald's has brought in supposedly healthier choices such as salads and toasted sandwiches worldwide and, instead of relying for most of its growth on opening new restaurants, has turned to upgrading its 31,000 existing ones. America has done best at this; under Mr Roberts, like-for-like sales there were up by 7.5% in October on a year earlier.
The new team's task is to keep the revitalisation plan on course, especially overseas, where some American brands are said to face political hostility from consumers. This is a big challenge. Is an in-house succession the best way to tackle it? Mr Skinner and Mr Roberts are both company veterans, having joined in the 1970s. Some recent academic studies find that the planned succession of a new boss groomed from within, such as Mr Bell and now (arguably) Mr Roberts, produces better results than looking hastily, or outside, for one. McDonald's smooth handling of its serial misfortunes at the top certainly seems to prove the point. Even so, everyone at McDonald's must be hoping that it will be a long time before the firm faces yet another such emergency.
Economist; 11/27/2004, Vol. 373 Issue 8403, p64-65, 2p, 1c
注(1)：本文选自Economist;11/27/2004, p64-65, 2p, 1c;
注(2)：本文习题命题模仿2000年真题text 1第1题(1)，1995年真题text 1第2题(2)，2002年真题text 2第2题(3)，1998年真题text 2第2题(4)和1999年真题text 1第4题(5);
1.The main reason for the constant change at the top of McDonald is ________.
[A] the board’s interference
[B] the falling sales
[C] the health problems of the chief executives
[D] the constant change of its share price
2.Which of the following was NOT a cause of the falling sales of McDonald?
[A] the change of the chief executive
[B] people’s concern about junk food
[C] dirty restaurant
[D] indifferent service
3.The phrase “heir apparent” (Line 7, Paragraph 2) in the article most probably
means____________.
[A] someone who has the same ideas, aims and style with a person
[B] someone who has the unalienable right to receive the family title
[C] someone who is appointed as a heir of a person
[D] someone who is likely to take over a person’s position when that person leaves
4.In terms of succession at the top, McDonald_________.
[A] has had to made rather hasty decisions
[B] prefers to appoint a new boss from within
[C] acts in a quick and unreasonable way
[D] surprises all the people with its decisions
5.Toward McDonald’s reaction to emergencies at the top, the writer’s attitude can be said to be___________.
[A] indifferent
[B] doubtful
[C] objective
[D] praiseful
答案：C A D B D
篇章剖析
本篇文章介绍了麦当劳高层人事接替的情况，是一篇说明文。第一段介绍了查里·贝尔辞去麦当劳首席执行官一事;第二段追溯了他如何成为麦当劳首席执行官;第三段介绍了麦当劳现任首席执行官如何接任;第四段分析了下一位可能的继任者;最后一段对这种内部接任的方式进行了总结。
词汇注释
colorectal: [9kEJlE`rektEl] adj. [解]结肠直肠的
franchisee: [9frAntFaI`zi:] n. 总经销商, 有代销权的人或团体
veteran: [5vetErEn] n. 老资格;老手
heirs apparent: 有继承权的人;公认的继任者
like-for-like: 同类的
revitalization: [ri:9vaItLlaI`zeIFLn] n. 振兴;复兴
in-house: [in5haus] adj. 内部的
groom: [^ru:m] v. 培训;培植
难句突破
1. Mr Cantalupo was a McDonald's veteran brought out of retirement in January 2003 to help remodel the firm after sales began falling because of dirty restaurants, indifferent service and growing concern about junk food.
主体句式：Mr. Canalupo was a McDonald’s veteran.
结构分析：这是一个复杂句，表语veteran后面有一个过去分词短语brought out of retirement作后置定语，这个定语还带有自己的两个状语，一个是不定式短语做目的状语，另外一个是after引导的时间状语从句，这个从句中还有一个because of引导的原因状语。bring sb. out of retirement的意思是“将某人从退休状态召回”。
句子译文：坎塔卢波在麦当劳工作过多年，在公司因为餐厅环境不卫生，服务态度差，以及人们对“垃圾食品”的不断质疑导致业绩下降之后，2003年他被从退休中召回，帮助公司进行改革。
2. Even so, everyone at McDonald's must be hoping that it will be a long time before the firm faces yet another such emergency.
主体句式：everyone must be hoping that…
结构分析：这个句子中包含一个由that引导的宾语从句和由before引导的状语从句。这个句子的难点在before这个词的理解上。通常before可以译为“才”。例如：It had been two days before I realized the problem. (过了两天我才意识到这个问题。)
句子译文：即便如此，相信麦当劳上下一定还是希望不要在近期内又面临这类紧急情况。
题目分析
1. 答案为C，属事实细节题。文章第一段提及Charlie Bell辞职的原因是他患了直肠癌;接着又在第二段说他升任总裁是因为他的前任在准备讲演时因为心脏病突发而去世。这样，麦当劳在一年内就不得不寻找第三位总裁。可见麦当劳高层频繁更换人员的原因是这些总裁的健康问题。
2. 答案为A，属事实细节题。可参见文章第二段第四行because of…后面的部分。
3. 答案为D，属猜词题。根据上下文，Charlie Bell被Jim Cantalupo提拔为首席运营官之后，被广泛视为是他的heir apparent，接着作者在第四段发问，现任的首席运营官会不会是现任总裁的heir apparent呢?显然，这个词组的意思应该是“接替某人职位”的人。
4. 答案为B，属推理判断题。根据文章，三位总裁都是在麦当劳内部管理人才，而且下一位继任者也已经内定，这种内部选定继任者的办法帮助麦当劳在一连串不幸事件发生后能够平稳交接。可见麦当劳更愿意从内部任命新老板。
5. 答案为D，属推理判断题。作者在第一段末评论麦当劳的行动时说道：“麦当劳又一次显示了其在任命新老板方面的快速决断能力。”在文末对麦当劳的内部接任方式进行总结时，作者引用某些学术研究的成果，认为这种方式的效果更好，并以“麦当劳在高层发生一连串的不幸事件后能够平静地交接似乎清楚地证明了这一点。”来加以说明。可见作者对于麦当劳处理类似发生在高层的突发事件的反应是持赞扬态度的。
参考译文
查里·贝尔四月成为麦当劳的首席执行官。不到一个月，医生就告诉他他患了直肠癌。在11月22日的股市交易结束之后，这家快餐公司宣布他已经辞职;该公司将需要这一年内的第三位老板。然而，当股市开张时，该公司的股价只是略有下降，很快又再次上扬。麦当劳又一次显示了其在任命新老板方面的快速决断能力。
贝尔先生本人是在吉姆·坎塔卢波(Jim Cantalupo)死于心脏病突发之后得到这一高层职位的。当时坎塔卢波正准备在几个小时之后的麦当劳特许经销商会议上致词。坎塔卢波在麦当劳工作过多年，在公司因为餐厅环境不卫生，服务态度差，以及人们对“垃圾食品”的不断质疑导致业绩下降之后，2003年他被从退休中召回，帮助公司进行改革。他制定了一项在大规模营销基础上的振兴计划，并且将贝尔先生提拔为首席运营官。坎塔卢波先生去世后，董事会很快开会确定任命贝尔先生，这位早就被公认为其继任者的44岁澳大利亚人担任这一首席职位。这次会议从该公司的第一位非美国籍的领导人那里得到了其许诺的公司首席执行官的讲演。
然而，在短短几周之内，公司高层就不得不思考如果贝尔先生病重无法继续工作该怎么办的问题。也许贝尔先生也在考虑同样的问题：他向来访者介绍60岁的副总裁吉姆·斯金纳时总是称他为“掌舵高手”。现在公司海外经营专家斯金纳先生(见图)成了公司首席执行官，主管公司美国经营业务的麦克·罗伯茨则加入董事会成为首席运营官。
罗伯茨先生是不是新的继任者呢?也许。麦当劳改变了主要依靠开新店发展企业的方法，而在全球推出了被认为更加健康的食品，比如沙拉和烤三明治，并且开始改进现有的31000家连锁快餐店的经营。美国在这方面做得最好;在罗伯茨先生的努力下，美国麦当劳十月的同类销售额比一年前增长了7%。
新团队的任务就是保持其振兴计划不变，尤其是海外部分，据说在海外某些美国品牌面对着来自消费者的政治敌意。这是一个巨大的挑战。这种内部接任的方式是不是迎接这种挑战的最佳方式呢?斯金纳先生和罗伯茨先生都是1970年代就加入公司的资深管理人员。最近的一些学术研究发现，内定的新老板，比如贝尔先生和现在(还未最终宣布)的罗伯茨先生，按计划接任会比草率任命一个新老板或者从外部聘请新老板效果更好。麦当劳在高层发生一连串的不幸事件后能够平静地交接似乎清楚地证明了这一点。即便如此，相信麦当劳上下一定还是希望不要在近期内又面临这类紧急情况。
3.Staggering
Things are slow to change in America's boardrooms
THE annual review of American company board practices by Korn/Ferry, a firm of headhunters, is a useful indicator of the health of corporate governance. TTwo years ago, only 41% of American firms said they regularly held meetings of directors without their chief executive present; this year the figure was 93%. But some things have been surprisingly unaffected by the backlash against corporate scandals. For example, despite a growing feeling that former chief executives should not sit on their company's board, the percentage of American firms where they do has actually edged up, from 23% in 2003 to 25% in 2004.
Also, disappointingly few firms have split the jobs of chairman and chief executive. Another survey of American boards published this week, by A.T. Kearney, a firm of consultants, found that in 2002 14% of the boards of S&P 500 firms had separated the roles, and a further 16% said they planned to do so. But by 2004 only 23% overall had taken the plunge. A survey earlier in the year by consultants at McKinsey found that 70% of American directors and investors supported the idea of splitting the jobs, which is standard practice in Europe.
Another disappointment is the slow progress in abolishing "staggered" boards--ones where only one-third of the directors are up for re-election each year, to three-year terms. Invented as a defence against takeover, such boards, according to a new Harvard Law School study by Lucian Bebchuk and Alma Cohen, are unambiguously "associated with an economically significant reduction in firm value".
Despite this, the percentage of S&P 500 firms with staggered boards has fallen only slightly--from 63% in 2001 to 60% in 2003, according to the Investor Responsibility Research Centre. And many of those firms that have been forced by shareholders to abolish the system are doing so only slowly. Merck, a pharmaceutical company in trouble over the possible side-effects of its arthritis drug Vioxx, is allowing its directors to run their full term before introducing a system in which they are all re-elected (or otherwise) annually. Other companies' staggered boards are entrenched in their corporate charters, which cannot be amended by a shareholders' vote. Anyone who expected the scandals of 2001 to bring about rapid change in the balance of power between managers and owners was, at best, naive.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Economist; 11/13/2004, Vol. 373 Issue 8401, p67-67, 4/9p
注(1)：本文选自Economist;11/13/2004, p67-67, 4/9p;
注(2)：本文习题命题模仿1998年真题text 1第2题(1)，2002年真题text 2第2题(2)，text 5第3题(3)，2004年真题text 4第2题(4)和1999年真题text 1第4题(5);
1.The Sarbanes-Oxley act is most probably about_________.
[A] corporate scandal
[B] corporate management
[C] corporate cost
[D] corporate governance
2.The word “backlash” (Line 3, Paragraph 2) most probably means_________.
[A] a violent force
[B] a strong impetus
[C] a firm measure
[D] a strong negative reaction
3.According to the text, separating the roles between chairman and chief executive
is________.
[A] a common practice in American companies
[B] what many European companies do
[C] a must to keep the health of a company
[D] not a popular idea among American entrepreneurs
4.We learn from the text that a "staggered" board________.
[A] is adverse to the increment of firm value
[B] gives its board members too much power
[C] has been abolished by most American companies
[D] can be voted down by shareholders
5.Toward the board practice of American companies, the writer’s attitude can be said to
be________.
[A] biased
[B] pessimistic
[C] objective
[D] critical
答案：D D B A D
篇章剖析
本篇文章是一篇议论文，对美国公司的董事会变化缓慢的情况提出了批评。第一段引用一家猎头公司的年度评论说明一项旨在防止公司财务丑闻的法案已经对美国公司的董事会产生了影响;在第二段作者笔锋一转，说明虽然公司丑闻对于公司董事会的做法产生了一些影响，但仍然有一些方面毫无变化或者变化缓慢。接下来作者分析了几种典型的情况;三段指出了一些公司董事和总裁职务不分的情况;第四断指出一些公司在废除“交错董事任期”的董事会方面进展缓慢;第五段以具体的例子对上述情况加以说明并得出结论：要改变职业经理人和公司所有人之间的权力平衡并非一蹴而就之事。
词汇注释
headhunter: [5hedhQntE(r)] n. 用高薪征聘人才者
governance: [5^QvEnEns] n. 治理;管理
boardroom: [5bC:dru:m] n. (董事会)会议室
albeit: [C:l5bi:It] conj. 虽然
backlash: [5bAklAF] n. 激烈反应，激烈反对对一个较早行动的对抗性反应
take the plunge: 冒险，采取断然行动
staggered: [5stA^Ed] adj. 交错的
unambiguously: [5QnAm5bi^juEsli] adv. 明白地,不含糊地
pharmaceutical: [7fB:mE5sju:tikEl] adj. 制药的;调药的
arthritis: [B:5Wraitis] n. 关节炎
entrench: [In5trentF] v. 保护
amend: [E5mend] v. 改正;修改
难句突破
Merck, a pharmaceutical company in trouble over the possible side-effects of its arthritis drug Vioxx, is allowing its directors to run their full term before introducing a system in which they are all re-elected (or otherwise) annually.
主体句式：Merck is allowing its directors to run their full term
结构分析：这是一个复杂句，句子的主语之后又一个较长的同位语短语，句子中还有一个before引导的状语，在这个状语中含有一个which引导的定语从句。before在这种情况下通常译为“才”。
句子译文：因为所生产的关节炎药物Vioxx的潜在副作用而陷入困境的默克制药公司现在允许其董事任期直到届满，然后才会引入一个每年将所有人重新选任一遍(或者别的方法)的制度。
题目分析
1. 答案为D，属推理判断题。根据第一段，the Sarbanes-Oxley act的通过是为了防止再次出现类似安然公司或者世通公司垮掉的情况。而文章又提到在公司治理方面，该法案已经显现出了一定的影响力。可见，该法案是有关公司治理的法案。
2. 答案为D，属猜词题。首先确定“backlash”与反对公司丑闻有关，其次，下文对backlash给了一个具体的例子，就是“越来越多的人认为前任总裁不应该继续留在董事会里”，显然这符合选项D中的“强烈的对抗性/否定性反应”。
3. 答案为B，属事实细节题。根据文章第三段最后一句，将董事长和总裁的职务区分开来是“欧洲的行业惯例”。
4. 答案为A，属事实细节题。根据文章第四段的一份最新哈佛商学院研究，“staggered board”是为了防止公司权力被夺取而被发明的，但它显然“和公司价值的显著下降有关”。可见这种交错董事任期的董事会不利于公司价值的增长。
5. 答案为D，属推理判断题。本文指出虽然出台了防止公司丑闻的法案，但美国公司的董事会变化依然缓慢。继而分析了几种令人失望的情况。在文章最末作者指出，人们不应该天真的相信2001年的丑闻会迅速改变职业经理人和公司所有人之间的权力平衡。可见作者对美国公司的董事会持批评的态度。
参考译文
猎头公司“光辉国际”(Korn/Ferry)推出的美国公司董事会惯例年度评论是了解公司治理状况的有用指南。今年11月12日发表的年度评论表明，2002年通过的旨在防止类似安然公司和世通公司垮掉的事情再次发生的《萨班-奥西利法案》对董事会已经产生了一定的影响---虽然按照“光辉国际”的估计，实施该法案的平均成本是每家公司510万美元。
两年前，只有41%的美国公司说他们会在首席执行官不在场的情况下定期举行董事会;今年这一数字达到了93%。不过，令人惊异的是，对公司丑闻的强烈反对并没有影响到某些事情的发展。例如，虽然越来越多的人认为前任总裁不应该继续留在董事会里，但美国公司董事会中前任总裁的比率不降反升了，从2003年的23%上升到了2004年的25%。
另外，将董事长和总裁的职务区分开来的公司很少，这一点令人颇为失望。一家咨询公司“A.T.卡尼”公司在本周发布的另外一份对美国董事会的调查发现，2002年标准普尔500家公司中，有14%的董事会已经进行了职务角色的区分，另有16%的董事会表示计划这么做。可是到2004年，在全部公司中，只有23%的公司采取了行动。同年早些时候麦肯锡公司的咨询师发布的一项调查发现，70%的美国董事和投资人支持职务区分的想法，而这在欧洲早已是行业惯例了。
另一件令人失望的事情就是在废除“交错董事任期”的董事会方面进展缓慢---所谓交错董事任期，就是每年只改选三分之一的董事，而每一届董事的任期是三年。依据吕西安·贝布查克和阿尔玛·科恩的一份最新哈佛商学院研究，这种为了防止公司权力被夺取而发明的董事会显然“和公司价值的显著下降有关”。
尽管如此，标准普尔500公司中有交错董事任期的董事会比例却只有轻微下降---“投资人责任研究中心”的数据显示，该比率仅从2001年的63%下降到了2003年的60%。许多被股东施压要求放弃这一制度的公司现在只是缓慢地着手这一工作。因为所生产的关节炎药物Vioxx的潜在副作用而陷入困境的默克制药公司现在允许其董事任期直到届满，然后才会引入一个每年将所有人重新选任一遍(或者别的方法)的制度。其他公司交错董事任期的董事会是由公司规章确立的，不能由股东投票改变。如果有人期望2001年的丑闻会迅速改变职业经理人和公司所有人之间的权力平衡的话，那么他未免太天真了。
4.Burnished
Up goes gold, down goes the dollar
MOST economists hate gold. Not, you understand, that they would turn up their noses at a bar or two. But they find the reverence in which many hold the meSo why is its price soaring? Over the past week, this has topped $450 a troy ounce, up by 9% since the beginning of the year and 77% since April 2001. Ah, comes the reply, gold transactions are denominated in dollars, and the rise in the price simply reflects the dollar's fall in terms of other currencies, especially the euro, against which it hit a new low this week. Expressed in euros, the gold price has moved much less. However, there is no iron link, as it were, between the value of the dollar and the value of gold. A rising price of gold, like that of anything else, can reflect an increase in demand as well as a depreciation of its unit of account.
This is where gold bulls come in. The fall in the dollar is important, but mainly because as a store of value the dollar stinks. With a few longish rallies, the greenback has been on a downward trend since it came off the gold standard in 1971. Now it is suffering one of its sharper declines. At the margin, extra demand has come from those who think dollars--indeed any money backed by nothing more than promises to keep inflation low--a decidedly risky investment, mainly because America, with the world's reserve currency, has been able to create and borrow so many of them. The least painful way of repaying those dollars is to make them worth less.
The striking exception to this extra demand comes from central banks, which would like to sell some of the gold they already have. As a legacy of the days when their currencies were backed by the metal, central banks still hold one-fifth of the world's gold. Last month the Bank of France said it would sell 500 tonnes in coming years. But big sales by central banks can cause the price to plunge--as when the Bank of England sold 395 tonnes between 1999 and 2002. The result was an agreement between central banks to co-ordinate and limit future sales.
If the price of gold marches higher, this agreement will presumably be ripped up, although a dollar crisis might make central banks think twice about switching into paper money. Will the overhang of central-bank gold drag the price down again? Not necessarily. As James Grant, gold bug and publisher of Grant's Interest Rate Observer, a newsletter, points out, in recent years the huge glut of government debt has not stopped a sharp rise in its price.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Economist; 12/4/2004, Vol. 373 Issue 8404, p76-76, 1/3p, 1 graph
注(1)：本文选自Economist;12/4/2004, p76-76, 1/3p;
注(2)：本文习题命题模仿2000年真题text 4第3题(1)，2001年真题text 4第2题(2)，text 1第2题(3)，2002年真题text 2第2题(4)和text 5第3题(5);
1.In economists’ eyes, gold is something__________.
[A] they look down upon
[B] that can be exchanged in the market
[C] worth people’s reverence
[D] that should be replaced by other forms of money
2.According to the author, one of the reasons for the rising of gold price is___________.
[A] the increasing demand for gold
[B] the depreciation of the euro
[C] the link between the dollar and gold
[D] the increment of the value of the dollar
3.We can infer from the third paragraph that_________.
[A] the decline of the dollar is inevitable
[B] America benefits from the depreciation of the dollar
[C] the depreciation of the dollar is good news to other currencies
[D] investment in the dollar yields more returns than that in gold
4.The phrase “ripped up” (Line 1, Paragraph 5) most probably means__________.
[A] strengthened
[B] broadened
[C] renegotiated
[D] torn up
5.According to the passage, the rise of gold price__________.
[A] will not last long
[B] will attract some central banks to sell gold
[C] will impel central banks to switch into paper money
[D] will lead to a dollar crisis
答案：B A B D B
篇章剖析
本篇文章采用了提出问题-分析问题的模式，分析了金价上涨，美元下跌的经济态势。第一段说明黄金是一种商品;第二段分析了金价上涨的原因：金价的上涨反映了需求的增加以及计价单位的贬值;第三段美元下跌的原因;第四段分析了各国央行的反应;最后一段对金价继续上扬可能带来的影响进行了分析。
词汇注释
reverence: [5revErEns] n. 崇敬，尊敬
millennia: [mI`lenIE] n. millennium的复数
soaring: [5sC:riN] adj. 剧增的;上升到明显高于正常水平的
troy ounce: n. 金衡制盎司, 金衡?
denominate: [di5nCmineit] v. 以…面值发行以某种给定的货币单位发行或表达
euro: [`jJErEJ] n. 欧元
depreciation: [dIpri:FI5eIF(E)n] n. 跌价;贬值
bull: [bul] n. 买空;(做)多头
stink: [stiNk] v. 发出臭味
longish: [5lRNIF] adj. 相当长的
rally: [5rAli] n. (行情、价格等)跌后复升
greenback: [`^ri:nbAk] n. 美钞
tonne: [tQn] n. 公吨(=1,000公斤或称 metric ton)
rip up: 斯毁;取消
overhang: [5EuvE5hAN] n. 突出量
难句突破
At the margin, extra demand has come from those who think dollars--indeed any money backed by nothing more than promises to keep inflation low--a decidedly risky investment, mainly because America, with the world's reserve currency, has been able to create and borrow so many of them.
主体句式：extra demand has come
结构分析：本句是一个复杂句，from这个介词所引导的状语中包含一个who 引导的定语从句，一个插入语，主句之后是一个because引导的原因状语从句。nothing more than的意思是“只不过，仅仅”。
句子译文：在此下跌情况下，导致金价上扬的额外需求来自于那些认为美元---或者任何一种依靠抑制通胀的许诺来支撑的货币—无疑是一种高风险投资的人，主要因为美国拥有美元这一世界储备货币，而且一直能够制造和借来很多美元。
题目分析
1. 答案为B，属事实细节题。文章第一段提到经济学家不喜欢黄金的原因是人们对黄金缺乏理性的崇拜。在他们看来，黄金只不过是一种商品，也就是可以在市场交换的东西。
2. 答案为A，属事实细节题。文章第二段分析了金价上涨的两个主要原因：金价用美元表示，而美元相对于其他货币贬值了;市场对黄金需求的增加。
3. 答案为B，属推理判断题。根据文章第三段，美国因为拥有世界储备货币，而且一直能够制造和借来很多美元。要偿还这些美元，最不费力的方式就是让美元贬值。可见，美元贬值对美国是有益无害的事情。
4. 答案为D，属猜词题。根据文章第四段，为了防止出现一国央行大量抛售黄金导致金价下跌的情况，各国央行达成协议，协调和限制今后的黄金销售。如果金价持续上涨，很可能一些央行会再次抛售黄金(文中提到法国央行出售黄金的决定)，那样各国央行之间的协议就会被破坏。因此，根据上下文，“ripped up”最有可能的意思就是“torn up”(撕毁)。
5. 答案为B，属推理判断题。根据文章第四段，在许多买家大量买入黄金的同时，许多央行却打算将他们囤积的黄金出售。文章第五段说，如果金价继续上扬，各国央行之间的“限制和协调未来黄金销售”的协议将会被打破，也就是说金价的上涨会吸引各国央行出售黄金。
参考译文
大多数经济学家都讨厌黄金。要知道，这可不是因为他们瞧不起一两块金条，而是因为他们发现许多人对这种金属的崇敬几乎到了毫无理性的地步。这与它被用作千禧年的货币并无关系：那已经是昨日黄花了。现代货币采用的是纸币的形式，或者，更多时候，采用的是电子数据的形式。对经济学家来说，黄金现在只是另外一种商品。
那么为什么金价会大幅上涨呢?在过去一周里，每金衡(1金衡约31.1025克)的价格达到了450美元，比年初上涨了9%，而比2001年4月则上涨了77%。啊，答案来了，黄金交易是以美元来计数的，价格的上涨只是反映了美元对其他货币的比价，尤其是对欧元比价的下跌，而本周美元对欧元的比价又创新低。用欧元计数的话，金价的波动要小得多。然而，美元价值和黄金价值之间似乎并没有固定联系。像其他任何东西一样，金价的上涨反映了需求的增加以及计价单位的贬值。
因此就出现了黄金买空。美元的下跌之所以重要主要是因为作为一种价值储存手段美钞可谓臭名昭著。自从1971年美元脱离金本位，就一直处于跌势，其间只有为数不多的几次跌后复升。这一次下跌的跌幅更大。在此下跌情况下，导致金价上扬的额外需求来自于那些认为美元---或者任何一种依靠抑制通胀的许诺来支撑的货币—无疑是一种高风险投资的人，主要因为美国拥有美元这一世界储备货币，而且一直能够制造和借来很多美元。要偿还这些美元，最不费力的方式就是让美元贬值。
各国中央银行的反应跟这种额外需求正好形成鲜明对照。这些银行都想把手里的黄金卖掉一些。以前各国货币都依靠这种金属，历史继承的结果就是各国中央银行的黄金储量是世界黄金总量的五分之一。上个月，法国中央银行宣布即将在未来几年出售500吨黄金。不过中央银行大量出售黄金会导致金价猛跌--- 1999年至2002年之间英格兰银行出售395吨黄金时就发生过这种情况。其结果是各国央行达成协议，协调限制今后的销售。
如果金价继续上扬，这个协议就会被破坏，虽然一场美元危机会让各国央行在转向纸币经营问题上慎之又慎。那么央行所储备的大量黄金是否会将金价再次拉下来呢?那倒不一定。正如黄金迷，时事通讯《格兰特利率观察家》的出版人詹姆斯·格兰特所指出的，最近几年政府的巨额债务并未阻止金价的大幅上涨。
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