Wall Street falls with S&P 500, Nasdaq erasing 2011 gain

    NEW YORK, March 16 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday on Japan's nuclear disaster and lower-than-expectation economic reports, with the Standard & Poor's 500 Index and the Nasdaq erasing¹ their gains for the year.
    All three major indexes ended at their lowest levels of 2011. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 242.12 points, or 2.04 percent, to 11,613.30. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 24. 99 points, or 1.95 percent, to 1,256.88. The Nasdaq declined 50.51 points, or 1.89 percent, to 2,616.82.
    The sharp decline on Wednesday began after European Union Energy Commissioner（理事委员） Guenther Oettinger said that Japan's nuclear plant was effectively out of control.
    "In coming hours there could be further catastrophic events which could pose a threat to the lives of people on the island," European media quoted Oettinger as saying.
    The economic reports on Wednesday were not as good as expected as well. The U.S. Commerce Department posted that new home construction dropped to the second lowest level on record in February.
    Investors² believed that the reading was reflecting a slightly weak demand. D.R. Horton Inc., a home construction company, fell 2. 26 percent.
    Meanwhile, wholesale³ prices increased last month by the most in nearly two years because of higher energy costs and the biggest increase in food prices in 36 years.
    Investors began to worry about the possible inflation risks and stocks of relevant companies dropped. McDonald's Corp. fell 2.32 percent and Starbucks Corp. fell 2.02 percent.
    Moreover, also because of the worsening situation in Japan, the dollar slumped⁴ to a four-month low of 79.84 against the yen⁵ in late trading session, just few steps away from the all-time low of 79.75 set on April 19, 1995.
    Treasury⁶ prices jumped, sending yields to their lowest levels this year as investors piled into investments seen as being more stable.
    Crude prices on Wednesday, however, rebounded⁷ from a three-week low after a fluctuating trading day as concerns about unrest in the Middle East lifted the prices, despite worries about Japan's nuclear crisis.(本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑)

1 erasing   

v.擦掉( erase的现在分词 )；抹去；清除

参考例句：

• He was like a sponge, erasing the past, soaking up the future. 他象一块海绵，挤出过去，吸进未来。 来自辞典例句
• Suddenly, fear overtook longing, erasing memories. 突然，恐惧淹没了渴望，泯灭了回忆。 来自辞典例句

2 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

3 wholesale   

n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售

参考例句：

• The retail dealer buys at wholesale and sells at retail.零售商批发购进货物，以零售价卖出。
• Such shoes usually wholesale for much less.这种鞋批发出售通常要便宜得多。

4 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

5 yen   

n. 日元；热望

参考例句：

• He wanted to convert his dollars into Japanese yen.他想将美元换成日币。
• He has a yen to be alone in a boat.他渴望独自呆在一条船上。

6 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

7 rebounded   

弹回( rebound的过去式和过去分词 )； 反弹； 产生反作用； 未能奏效

参考例句：

• The ball rebounded from the goalpost and Owen headed it in. 球从门柱弹回，欧文头球将球攻进。
• The ball rebounded from his racket into the net. 球从他的球拍上弹回网中。