澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2015-11-29

Shares in Slater & Gordon have slumped¹ again raising questions about the future of the business. Proposed regulatory changes to limit personal injury claims in the UK where it also operates sparked a 50% fall in the company share price yesterday. Slater & Gordon’s market value has now slipped to just under 250 million dollars. It clipped by its debt burden of more than 700 million dollars. The stock peaked in April at $7.85 a share. Today, shares in Slater & Gordon are worth just 69 cents. Elsewhere on the market, JB Hi-Fi is among the best performers. The market heavy ways were mixed. BHP Billiton is back below 19 dollars a share. Early gains faded on the broad market by the close. The All Ords was down 1/5 of a percent as was the ASX 200 Index. The Australian dollar is holding above 72 US cents. Consumers are going to have to pay to keep the letter postal² service alive. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has cleared the way for Australian post to raise the price of a basic stamp by 43% from 70 cents to one dollar. The changes will also mean letters will take two days longer to arrive at their destinations. The increase will happen on the 4th of January next year.

1 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。

2 postal   

adj.邮政的，邮局的

参考例句：

• A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。