VOA标准英语2010年-Spanish Economic Crisis Threatens to S

Spain is among the latest European countries to introduce tough austerity measures that may not be popular at home, but are deemed necessary to keep the country afloat. Spain, alongside Greece, is among those European countries with massive public debts and economies widely deemed vulnerable to a crash that could drag the euro with it.

It is 7:30 in the morning in the north of Madrid, and the queue for the job center is already stretching around the block.
Among those in line is Patricia Martinez. She used to be a nurse, but seven months ago she was laid off. Now each morning she arrives here to try to find new work. She is not having much luck.

"The reality is that economically it is fatal, but emotionally for people too it can also be terrible.  I do not know what is happening, not just in Spain, but in Europe and the world," she said.

Patricia's story is all too familiar.  Spain has the highest unemployment rate in Europe at 20 percent, and it is likely to get worse.

Europe is haunted by the fear of huge public debt. Spain's debt totals more than 11 percent of its GDP. Although its economy is far larger, investors¹ fear that Spain, like Greece, might soon be unable to pay its creditors². So the government is slashing⁴ public spending by $18 billion over two years.

Economist⁵ Javier Ortega at London's City University says Spain's debt has been rising sharply in recent years. "The reason is essentially⁶ this increase in unemployment, because there are more unemployment benefits to be paid.  So now there is a problem of credibility of what the government is going to do, and of course the situation is different to situations in other periods because now there is a common currency," he said.

Debt collection is now big business in Spain and it has got a highly visible face. One company called 'El Cobrador del Frac' specializes in shaming their targets into paying up, by dispatching debt collectors dressed in top hats and tuxedos⁷ to shadow their targets.  he company's commercial director Juan Carlos Rodriguez says business is booming.

"The construction industry is among the worst hit.  It all began three or four years ago when there was construction boom.  Then with the crash, nobody would finish the work.  Nobody got paid.  In Andalusia in the south of Spain especially you can see the results of this," he said,

On the southern coast - known as the Costa del Sol - block after block of apartments lie empty or half finished, many of them designed for foreign buyers who have long since abandoned the idea of investing in Spain.

Inez Rix of Direct Property Auctions⁸ specializes in helping⁹ owners who are now struggling to sell their place in the sun. "It was absolutely crazy here in the boom times.  It was really in the late 1990s or 2000s.  Prices were just going up and up, people were asking for anything they could get away with.  Now there are hundreds of places like this across the Costa Del Sol because developers have run out of money, and of course the banks have pulled out," he said.

The debt crisis is threatening to sink the euro currency, so the European Union has pledged to guarantee loans totaling around a trillion dollars.  But in return, governments must slash³ public spending.

The prospect¹⁰ of wage cuts and pension freezes has prompted street demonstrations¹¹. Unions have called for a nationwide strike in September, against plans to make it easier for companies to hire and fire workers.

Economist Javier Ortega says Europe must become more competitive."For our European welfare state to be maintained there have to be changes. Essentially we have to adapt more quickly to competition from other countries. It is not like in the past," he said.

Europe may have emerged from recession, but its effects are only now becoming clear. With the euro currency under threat, the pain of government cuts will be felt for many years to come.

For job-hunter Patricia Martinez, this day brought no change of luck. And like millions of people across Spain, she will be back again in the morning looking for a new job and wondering how the situation can improve.

 

1 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

2 creditors   

n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 slash   

vi.大幅度削减；vt.猛砍，尖锐抨击，大幅减少；n.猛砍，斜线，长切口，衣衩

参考例句：

• The shop plans to slash fur prices after Spring Festival.该店计划在春节之后把皮货降价。
• Don't slash your horse in that cruel way.不要那样残忍地鞭打你的马。

4 slashing   

adj.尖锐的；苛刻的；鲜明的；乱砍的v.挥砍( slash的现在分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Slashing is the first process in which liquid treatment is involved. 浆纱是液处理的第一过程。 来自辞典例句
• He stopped slashing his horse. 他住了手，不去鞭打他的马了。 来自辞典例句

5 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

6 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

7 tuxedos   

n.餐服，无尾晚礼服( tuxedo的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our services include design and tailoring for wedding gowns, tuxedos and party dressesfrom and American brands. 们的服务范围包括高级婚纱设计定制，高级礼服、派对装设计定制，及欧美一线品牌成衣的驳样定制。 来自互联网
• Most tuxedos are black, but some people like to wear white ones called 'morning suits'. 大多数男士无尾晚礼服是黑色的，不过有些人喜欢穿那种被称为“晨服”的白色装。 来自互联网

8 auctions   

n.拍卖，拍卖方式( auction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They picked up most of the furniture at auctions in country towns. 他们大部分的家具都是在乡村镇上的拍卖处买的。 来自辞典例句
• Our dealers didn't want these cars, so we had to dump them at auctions. 我们的承销商都不要这些车子，因此我们只好贱价拍卖。 来自辞典例句

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

10 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

11 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。