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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
NEW YORK, March 9 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. stocks dropped on Wednesday, the two-year anniversary of the beginning of a bull market, as concerns(关于) of oil prices and Middle East unrest continued to weigh on investors1' minds.
U.S. crude oil price dipped on Wednesday as crude inventories2 rose more than expected, though Brent crude rose on fears caused by continued violence in Libya.
Meanwhile, Rex Tillerson, the CEO of energy giant Exxon Mobil Corp., said on Wednesday that he didn't think the recent jump in oil prices was hurting the U.S. economy just yet, but it's getting close.
The market was worrying that the surging oil prices would hurt global economic recovery. Adding to those concerns, the Portuguese3 government's two-year cost of borrowing hit the highest level since it joined the eurozone in a bond auction4 on Wednesday.
Wednesday marked the two-year anniversary(周年纪念日) of the beginning of a bull market. On March 9, 2009, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 6,547 and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index closed at 677. The Dow is back above 12,000 now and the S&P 500 index has almost doubled.
Meanwhile, the wholesale5 report was slightly positive, but still failed to boost the market. According to the U.S. Commerce Department, the wholesale inventories climbed 1.1 percent in January. Sales at the wholesale level rose 3.4 percent, the largest gain since November 2009.
Economists6 expected that as businesses kept expanding, demands for products would continue to grow. And larger sales may also encourage businesses to keep restocking their shelves and boost factory production.
According to the report, a 10.6-percent rise in demand for petroleum7 helped lift sales, reflecting higher oil and gas prices.
While some investors were concerned that surging oil prices might have a negative impact on economy, some others believed the boost in sales and inventories in January hinted that the economy could withstand the impact.
The Dow Jones industrial average lost 1.29 points, or 0.01 percent, to 12,213.09. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 1. 80 points, or 0.14 percent, to 1,320.02. The Nasdaq declined 14.05 points, or 0.51 percent, to 2,751.72.(本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑)
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investors
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n.投资者,出资者( investor的名词复数 ) | |
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inventories
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n.总结( inventory的名词复数 );细账;存货清单(或财产目录)的编制 | |
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Portuguese
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n.葡萄牙人;葡萄牙语 | |
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4
auction
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n.拍卖;拍卖会;vt.拍卖 | |
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5
wholesale
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n.批发;adv.以批发方式;vt.批发,成批出售 | |
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6
economists
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n.经济学家,经济专家( economist的名词复数 ) | |
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7
petroleum
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n.原油,石油 | |
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