英语听力精选进阶版 7114（在线收听）

Background: 中国银行已经开始面向欧洲市场发放购房贷款。作为全球第三大银行，中国银行提供的贷款要比英国当地资金紧缺的银行更具吸引力，很多业主将会看到中行的利率和信贷紧缩前的利率相差无几。

The Bank of China's entry into the British market will come as a surprise to some and a relief to many.

It hasn't been crippled by the credit crunch and it's rich with Chinese savings when many big European banks are still struggling with massive government bailout loans.

The Chinese also bring with them more than a whiff of old-fashioned banking; the kind of rules that prevailed before the credit crunch, when bankers actually talked first to their customers.

The Bank will use its own capital, another return to past practice. Economists will laud what's happening as evidence that the market does work: the Chinese earn money from selling cheap goods to Europeans, then save what they earn in banks which then cycle the money back to Europeans as loans for them to buy property.

Others have spotted the same opportunities as the Bank of China. Israeli and Swedish banks, also less affected by the credit crunch than the mainstream European banks, are offering loans in the potentially lucrative British home loans market substantially cheaper than the local alternative.

GLOSSARY 词汇表

relief 慰藉

crippled 受创了

credit crunch 信贷紧缩

savings 存款

struggling 挣扎

massive 巨大的

bailout loans 紧急援助贷款

whiff 一点点

old-fashioned 传统的，老套的

prevailed 盛行，普遍

capital 资本

past practice 过去的做法

laud 赞美

goods 商品

cycle 流转

property 房产

mainstream 主流

lucrative 利润丰厚的

spotted 发现了

substantially 大大地

Questions and Answers

1. Were the cables laid above ground?

No, they were laid under the sea.

2. How many new cables are going to become operational soon?

Four, including the Seacom cable.

3. Will the cable mean cheaper internet access for everyone?

No, some internet providers will not be lowering their prices.

4. Why is it feared the new cable will not benefit everyone living in villages?

Because they do not all have a reliable electricity supply.