World markets were mixed Thursday due to investor concerns over the U.S. stimulus plan and more gloomy corporate news. In Britain, the Royal Bank of Scotland, or RBS, has posted the largest annual loss in U.K. corporate history with a $34 billion shortfall for 2008.
全球股票市场星期四涨跌不一，投资者对美国经济刺激计划以及更多来自企业的黯淡消息感到担忧。在英国，苏格兰皇家银行公布2008年亏损额高达340亿美元，创下英国企业史上最大的年度亏损记录。
Investors in Asia say more specifics about the U.S. government's financial rescue plan are required to change market sentiment there.
亚洲投资者表示，美国政府的金融救助计划应该更加具体，才能够改变亚太市场的情绪。
On Thursday, most Asian indices were down. Only markets in Australia and Taiwan rose.
In Europe, the picture was more upbeat as investors welcomed a British plan that will allow struggling banks to access government insurance against future losses.
欧洲股市则相对乐观。英国政府准备出资担保陷入困境的银行，以免银行遭受进一步的亏损，投资者对此表示欢迎。
In the case of the Royal Bank of Scotland, hundreds of billions of dollars worth of debt will now be covered by the taxpayer-funded asset protection program.
以苏格兰皇家银行为例，价值数千亿美元的债务将得到由纳税人的钱来支持的资产担保计划的保护。
Because of this, British taxpayers now hold an 84 percent stake in the bank. Treasury Secretary Alistair Darling maintains the move is necessary.
正因为这点，苏格兰皇家银行的84%的股份由纳税人拥有。英国财政大臣达林坚持认为，采取这样的措施是必要的。
"We are putting in additional support to RBS to help it get through this recession and in addition to that we are offering insurance about 325 billion pounds of assets, these are things like commercial loans or mortgages which are worth less now then they were perhaps a few months ago but which we hope will increase in value as we get through this recession," Darling said.
他说：“我们现在向苏格兰皇家银行提供额外的支持，帮助他们渡过这次衰退。除此之外，我们还为他们3250亿英镑的资产提供担保，这些包括商业贷款以及住房贷款等，住房价值目前比几个月前要低，但是我们希望在银行渡过衰退后，房屋资产价值会有所回升。”
The asset insurance announcement came on the same day as the bank disclosed the highest-ever annual corporate loss in British history of $34 billion.
就在政府宣布给予银行资产担保的同一天，苏格兰皇家银行宣布亏损340亿美元，创下英国企业史上最大的年度亏损记录。
Despite the huge sums, Darling promises when this global downturn is finally over, the taxpayer will see the money currently being pumped into institutions like RBS, returned to the public coffers.
尽管数额巨大，但是达林承诺，全球经济衰退最终结束后，纳税人会看到为苏格兰皇家银行等其他机构提供的钱会收归国库。
"Because the majority shareholding is owned by the taxpayer, when we are able to return RBS to normal, private ownership in the commercial sector, then of course those shares will be sold and that money will come back to the taxpayer," he said.
他说：“由于现在公司的大部分股票由纳税人掌握，当我们有能力让苏格兰皇家银行回归正常，股份重新为私人拥有时，我们会将这些股票出售，钱将归还纳税人。”
Meanwhile, there is widespread anger in the country with the disclosure that the former chief executive of RBS has started to collect a $930,000 a year pension from the bank that is now being supported by public funds.
与此同时，有消息说，苏格兰皇家银行前首席执行官已经开始从现在依赖公共资金运作的银行支取相当于每年93万美元的养老金，这个消息使英国民众普遍感到愤怒。
Prime Minister Gordon Brown says the matter is being looked at.
英国首相布朗说，政府正在调查此事。
"What we are trying to do whether it is with the bonus culture, the remuneration culture, the pensions culture or with the vast sponsorships of some of these companies is clean up the banking system so that it does the job it was intended to do, what people used to trust the banks to do," the prime minister said. "And that is, to lend money to ordinary citizens and keep the deposits safe and that is what we will continue to do, to make that clean up comprehensive."
他说：“我们现在试图做的就是，不管银行是否有奖金、酬金、养老金或是其他各种赞助等企业文化，我们就是要清理银行系统，让银行承担它本来应该承担的角色，人们相信银行应该承担的角色，也就是说，银行向普通人发放贷款，保持存款的安全。我们将持续不懈，确保清理做到彻底。”
Other institutions such as the Lloyds banking group are said to be looking into participating in the government's asset-protection plan.
据说，莱斯银行等其他机构也在考虑加入政府的资产担保项目。 |