VOA标准英语2010年-Goldman Sachs to Review Firm's Core Pr

Ayesha Tanzeem | New York City 08 May 2010

There were tough questions and protesters outside Goldman Sachs' annual shareholder¹ meeting, this week.  But as the chief executive of the giant Wall Street firm promised it would review its own business practices, investors³ reelected the company's board of directors.

 Goldman faces government allegations of civil fraud and reports of a criminal investigation⁴ linked to the troubled subprime mortgage markets.

Some shareholders⁵ and others expressed their displeasure with an iconic American company that, to some, has become a symbol of excess.

There were tough questions from some shareholders of one of America's oldest and biggest investment banks.  Inside, one investor² repeatedly called on the chief executive officer and chairman to resign.

Several protestors gathered outside the meeting in the financial district of New York, calling for more disclosure of cooperate spending on U.S. political campaigns. The scene outside the meeting comes three weeks after the firm was charged with civil fraud over subprime mortgages it sold to investors.  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission says Goldman lied about its risky⁶ securities just as the housing market was beginning to falter⁷.

Company executives have since faced angry lawmakers, U.S. senators who accused them of "unbridled greed."  Chairman and CEO Lloyd Blankfein and others strongly denied wrongdoing but there are reports in the U.S. media of a criminal probe.

Annemarie McAvoy, a former federal prosecutor⁹ and has worked on Wall Street, said, "I certainly wouldn't be happy with the mess they are in right now. As far as the SEC, the criminal investigation, the Senate hearings, they have got so much going on right now. And that makes it very difficult."

Shareholders have suffered losses of more than 20 percent since the SEC filed charges.  The chairman, Blankfein, promised his investors that the company would review the practices that made it subject to legal trouble and public censure¹⁰.

Katrina Vanden Heuvel is editor and publisher of the Nation Magazine. "If it was a meeting about anything, it was how they were going to be more introspective and reflective about their behavior and they've set up a committee on standards to look into moving with more integrity," she said.

Some economists¹¹ said the global financial crisis was fueled by a lack of oversight¹² of the subprime mortgage industry and its complicated investment products.

And some of Goldman's own traders boasted in e-mails that the company made more than it lost by making so-called short trades -- bets that its own risky mortgage products would lose money.

Despite the recent stock losses, some of Goldman's shareholders praised the embattled company's chief executive.

"I think he did what he was supposed to do. I think he was a market maker⁸. Personnaly I'm an investor and I don't think he has done anything wrong. Of course, it's up for the courts to decide," said one shareholder.

All of Goldman's board members, including the chairman, were re-elected.
 

1 shareholder   

n.股东，股票持有人

参考例句：

• The account department have prepare a financial statement for the shareholder.财务部为股东准备了一份财务报表。
• A shareholder may transfer his shares in accordance with the law.股东持有的股份可以依法转让。

2 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

3 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

4 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。

5 shareholders   

n.股东( shareholder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The meeting was attended by 90% of shareholders. 90%的股东出席了会议。
• the company's fiduciary duty to its shareholders 公司对股东负有的受托责任

6 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

7 falter   

vi.(嗓音)颤抖，结巴地说；犹豫；蹒跚

参考例句：

• His voice began to falter.他的声音开始发颤。
• As he neared the house his steps faltered.当他走近房子时，脚步迟疑了起来。

8 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

9 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

10 censure   

v./n.责备；非难；责难

参考例句：

• You must not censure him until you know the whole story.在弄清全部事实真相前不要谴责他。
• His dishonest behaviour came under severe censure.他的不诚实行为受到了严厉指责。

11 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。