CCTV9英语新闻：澳大利亚人积累高额的个人债务

Pressure is mounting for Australia’s banks to lower the interest rates on their credit cards. Critics point out that the nation’s cash rate has been cut twice this year to a historic low, but credit card fees remain high, pushing some people deeper into debt.

 

Lawyer Katherine Lane says the number one reason people seek her help at the Financial Rights Legal Centre in Sydney is credit card debt. Lane says some clients have racked up tens of thousands of dollars in debt spread across several credit cards.

 

About two thirds of Australian credit card users are paying interest, totaling more than $33 billion. That has gotten the attention of some senators who say they are concerned about a widening gap. The Central Bank lowered the nation’s cash rate this year to just 2 percent, but some credit card interest rates have remained around 20 percent.

 

The banks say the country’s cash rate does not determine their funding costs and has little impact on credit card interest rates.

 

The Australian Bankers’ Association says its members collectively paid about US$13.5 billion in taxes last year alone, and another half a billion in fees and levies¹. The association says that as a result, its members are more than earning their keep in Australia.

 

Consumer groups point out that Australia's four largest banks account for half of the country's credit card market—earning about US$5 billion a year.

 

But some senators are concerned about the people who cannot juggle² that system and are considering launching an investigation³.

 

And Lane says that, without a change, there is no doubt that she will continue to see more people who need her help.

1 levies   

（部队）征兵( levy的名词复数 )； 募捐； 被征募的军队

参考例句：

• At that time, taxes and levies were as many as the hairs on an ox. 那时，苛捐杂税多如牛毛。
• Variable levies can insulate farmers and consumers from world markets. 差价进口税可以把农民和消费者与世界市场隔离开来。

2 juggle   

v.变戏法，纂改，欺骗，同时做；n.玩杂耍，纂改，花招

参考例句：

• If you juggle with your accounts,you'll get into trouble.你要是在帐目上做手脚，你可要遇到麻烦了。
• She had to juggle her job and her children.她得同时兼顾工作和孩子。

3 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。