China, US Stock Markets Drop for Second Day

China, US Stock Markets Drop for Second Day

Stock market measures in the U.S. fell Tuesday after strong gains in the first hours of trading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average index closed Tuesday with a loss of more than one percent, after rising earlier in the day by almost 3 percent.

The volatility¹ in stock prices came after China’s stock exchanges dropped sharply for the second day. In Shanghai, the stock index fell almost 8 percent, after Monday’s drop of 8.5 percent.

Investors² blame concerns over an economic slowdown in China and its effects on growth around the world.

France launches terror investigation³

France announced Tuesday it has launched a terrorism investigation into last week's armed attack on a train traveling between Amsterdam and Paris.

French officials said they were investigating a Moroccan man for “attempted murder in connection with a terrorist enterprise.” The suspected gunman, Ayoub El-Khazzani, watched a radical⁴ Islamist video on his phone moments before he walked through the train with several guns and ammunition⁵.

Officials are expected to file charges against the man by Tuesday night.

The gunman was stopped by three Americans and a British citizen. Another man, a Franco-American tried to take away the gunman’s weapon. He was shot and remains⁶ in the hospital.

IS publishes photos of ruined Palmyra temple

The Islamic State group has posted pictures on the Internet that, it says, show the destruction of a 2,000-year-old temple in Palmyra, Syria. The ancient city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In some of the pictures, several men are carrying barrels into the temple. They put down the containers connected by blue wires on columns that support the structure. Other photos show a cloud of smoke and pieces of rock that appear to show the results of an explosion. UNESCO calls the temple’s destruction a war crime. UNESCO is the United Nations agency for culture, science and education.

Words in the News

volatility –n. showing extreme or sudden changes

columns –n. long posts of steel or stone

1 volatility   

n.挥发性，挥发度，轻快，（性格）反复无常

参考例句：

• That was one reason why volatility was so low last year.这也是去年波动性如此低的原因之一。
• Yet because volatility remained low for so long,disaster myopia prevailed.然而，由于相当长的时间里波动性小，灾难短视就获胜了。

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 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。

4 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

5 ammunition   

n.军火，弹药

参考例句：

• A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。
• They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。