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| Business Words in the News
Friday 01 February 2002
Vocabulary from the business news. Listen to and read the report then find explanations of difficult words below.
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World Economic Forum
Summary: The World Economic Forum meeting, under way in New York, is not a forum for taking decisions. But participants say the discussions give them a valuable insight into the problems they face. This report from Andrew Walker.
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| | The News | |
| | | A year ago the participants knew the world economy was slowing down. Now they know that the three largest developed economies - the United States, Japan and Germany - were all on their way into recession. It's the first time in a quarter-of-a-century that all three have done so at the same time, which has complicated the economic situation in many other countries too. Much of the talk here will be about how to generate renewed growth. As far as the US is concerned, most participants share the view prevailing in New York's financial markets that recovery is imminent, prompted by eleven quick-fire cuts in interest rates by the Federal Reserve last year. There are sceptics - people who worry that the revival may be held back by the huge debts built up during the boom of the nineteen-nineties by both business and individual consumers -- but they are a minority. Most here also think Germany's prospects are reasonably good. Japan is another matter. Breaking the cycle of unpaid debts, weak banks, falling prices and sluggish economic growth, or none at all has proved impossible for a decade. There are certainly economists here at the World Economic Forum with ideas on how to do it but it continues to elude the Japanese authorities.
Andrew Walker, BBC, New York
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| | The Words
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| | | recession
a period when the economy is not very successful
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| | | done so
experienced a recession
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| | | complicated
made it more difficult to understand and deal with
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| | | generate renewed growth
cause the economy to start growing again
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| | | recovery is imminent
the economy will improve soon
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| | | quick-fire-cuts
reductions coming rapidly one after the other
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| | | cycle
a series of events that is repeated again and again
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| | | sluggish
something that is sluggish works much more slowly than normal
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| | | none at all
absolutely no growth in the economy
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| | | elude
if something that you want eludes you, you fail to obtain or achieve it
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