Part One Directions: In this section, you will hear some short conversations. At the end of each conversation, a question will be asked about what was said. The conversation and the question will be spoken only once. During the pause, you must read the four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D, and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on the ANSWER SHEET with a single line through the center.
[解析] M: The Federal Reserve today raised two key interest rates a quarter of a point to try to keep inflation in check. W: With unemployment at a 29-year tow, the Fed fears companies will have to pay more to attract workers, re-igniting inflation. Q: Which of the following statements is not true according to the conversation?
2.
A.husband and wife
B.teacher and student
C.banker and his customer
D.employer and employee
A B C D
[解析] M: So your division in the bank is to ensure that your customers receive payment for the goods they expect. W: That's where we can help an exporter like your corporation. We often hear people say that exporting is easy, but to get paid is hard work. Q: What is the relationship between the speakers?
3.
A.the market prices
B.the expansion of the bank
C.hiring new staff
D.the cost of the bank operation
A B C D
[解析] M: Why is the increase in the cost as large as eighteen percent? W: It is partly because of the increase in staff numbers required to deal with the expansion of the Bank's fee-generation activities. Q: What are they talking about?
4.
A.The bank they're talking about is doing well.
B.They made a lot of money as a loan shark.
C.They are discussing interest rate as an important monetary policy tool.
D.It is very competitive in obtaining low interest rate loans.
A B C D
[解析] M: Here is some good news. Interests received amounts to 650 million dollars in this fiscal year and interests paid is 500 million. W: Then the net interest income is satisfactory indeed, in what is, as you know, an in- tensely competitive market. Q: Which of the following statements is true according to the conversation?
5.
A.mergers
B.acquisitions
C.tax
D.stock market
A B C D
[解析] M: You just told us your division in the bank is to provide advice to most UK and international companies. I just wonder what kind of advice do you provide? W: We provide advice on mergers, capital raising, takeovers, acquisitions and of course the stock market. Q: What kind of advice does the man's division not provide?
Part Two Directions: In this section, you will hear two short passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear some questions. The passages and the questions will be spoken only ONCE. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. Then mark the corresponding letter on the ANSWER SHEET with a single line through the center.
Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) are unconditional international reserve assets created by the International Monetary Fund in July 28, 1969, to meet the need for an appropriate level of world liquidity. They are now used for the need for transactions between the IMF, governments, central banks, and certain other official holders designated by the IMF. The SDRs exist merely as "book entries" on the ledgers of the IMF. As they are allocated to its members, the IMF credits the accounts of individual countries with the appropriate a- mounts. To use its SDRs, a country requests the IMF to transfer a specified amount of this financial asset from its account to the account of another country. In return, the transferring country receives balances in the currency of the receiving country. These balances can then be used to finance the country's balance of payments deficits. 6. What's the purpose of SDR?
2.
A.Anybody can apply for SDRs.
B.Only governments can purchase SDRs.
C.SDRs are used for some certain transaction.
D.SDRs are used for monetary policies.
A B C D
[解析] Which of the following statements about SDR is true according to the listening material?
A.They are numbers in the accounting books of IMF.
B.They are privileges.
C.They are conditions.
D.They are visible currencies.
A B C D
[解析] 8-10 The value of an SDR has been determined on the basis of a five-currency basket since January 1, 1981. This basket is composed of the currencies of the five IMF members with the largest export of goods and resources during the period of 1975-1979, with weights based on export balers and currency holdings by Fund members over the same period. At present, the weights in the currency composition are 42% for U. S. dollars, 19% for the German mark, and 13 percent each for pound sterling, Japanese yen and French franc. The definition of the basket is revised every five years to take changes in trading patterns into account. The first three allocations of SDRs took place in 1970, and the last of the second three allocations, started in 1979, was made in 1981. This last allocation brought the total number of SDRs outstanding to 21 433 million, of which 779. 3 have been allocated to Canada since 1970. The value of the SDR in terms of the U. S. dollar (or any other currency) fluctuates as the spot exchange rates fluctuate. For example, Canadian dollars per unit of SDR stood at 10 477 in 1970, 15 219 in 1980 and 13 620 in 1982. Beginning May 1, 1981, the IMF made new arrangements aimed at strengthening the international reserve-asset role of the SDR, but time will tell whether this role will be as good as that played by gold or gold-linked dollar, or merely an international unit of account for the denomination of contracts. 8. What are SDRs actually?
2.
A.German mark
B.Pound sterling
C.U. S. dollar
D.French franc
A B C D
[解析] Which of the following has the largest weight in the value of SDR at present?
3.
A.1970
B.1979
C.1980
D.1981
A B C D
[解析] When was the 6th allocation of SDR made?
二、单项选择
1. A mortgage is a type of ______.
A.supply
B.conveyance
C.limit
A B C
B
2. He wants to get a loan to ______ some improvements in his factory.
A.fluctuate
B.adjust
C.finance
A B C
C
3. Interest rates are high because money is ______.
A.guaranteed
B.variable
C.tight
A B C
C
4. They'll never get a mortgage; they're bad ______.
A.risks
B.mortgages
C.finance
A B C
A
5. There will be no change in the interest rate during the ______ of the mortgage.
A.life
B.limit
C.title
A B C
A
6. We're paying for the furniture we bought in monthly ______.
A.installments
B.budgets
C.credit bureau
A B C
A
7. The bank uses a ______ to find out how prospective borrowers repaid their past debts.
A.profile
B.loan agreement
C.credit bureau
A B C
C
8. Mr. Harris's application for a loan was approved because he is ______.
A.creditworthy
B.on time
C.capacity
A B C
A
9. Because the borrower defaulted on his repayment of the loan, the bank will hold the ______ responsible.
A.reporting agency
B.co-signer
C.budget
A B C
B
10. Lisa and Frank Edwards developed a ______ of monthly expenses to see how much money they would have left over to make loan payments on a refrigerator.
A.data
B.profile
C.consumer credit
A B C
B
三、完型填空 Check, draw, rate of exchange, commission, endorse, subject to, current, guaranted, participate, denominations
A person who has a 1 account with a bank can obtain cash in other countries in various ways. The most common method is the purchase of travellers cheques. He can also use his Eurocheque card as identification to 2 his cheques. Or he can 3 on his account in his own country, which means that the cashier will have to telephone, cable, or telex his branch for confirmation. He will have to 4 the cheque, that is' write his signature on the back. Most of the major banks in Europe 5 in the Eurocheque scheme. When cashier handle travellers cheques, they must 6 that the counter signature is the same as the signature. The holder must then produce his passport as identification. When the formalities are completed, the cashier can issue banknotes and coins to the customer, using the current, 7 to calculate how much to issue. Travellers cheques have the advantages of convenience and safety. They can be issued in 8 of 10, 25, 50, 100 and 250, 9 exchange control regulations, they must pay a small 10 , or service charge as it is called in the USA.
1.
current
2.
draw
3.
check
4.
endorse
5.
participate
6.
guarantee
7.
rate of exchange
8.
denominations
9.
subject to
10.
commission
四、阅读理解
Who can spot the risks?
The grand circle that regulators have to square is this: how to establish a framework of regulation that accommodates the characteristics of the traditional specialised banking system and mark it off from other businesses. With the sort of diversified financial services that are actually evolving, the era of strictly compartmentalised financial institutions is passing, leaving the regulatory system designed to match it looking increasingly out of date. A single omnipotent, omniscient regulator for all financial services remains dream. Many say it will stay that way, pointing out how long it took to get agreement just on rudimentary international rules for the capital adequacy of banks. Yet regulators everywhere acknowledge the need to cooperate more closely with their opposite numbers across industrial and geographical boundaries. They also agree that greater harmonisation of regulatory standards on everything from reporting requirements to risk assessment will come surely, if slowly. Much of that is likely to be mere tidying up. A good place to start in America would be scrapping the separate regulation of thrifts, If they have been there is little reason not to regulate them as banks (and especially given the mess thrift regulators have made of the job) . It is what Japan has sensibly done by making its equivalent of thrifts, so go banks, choose to be either credit unions or to become commercial banks. Britain, too, has let those of its building societies with ambitions to be banks, and to be regulated as such. These are moves in another right direction to switch away from regulation by institution, as mostly happens now, to regulation by function. This means that regulation becomes a matter of supervising what is done rather than who does it. Unsystematic deregulation has brought the system to its present ugly pass. This has left an increasing number of competitive anomalies. Much of the pressure for, and resistance to, further change comes from those institutions that wish to alleviate or entrench their market disadvantage. In both America and Japan, the debates about reforming the domestic financial systems, and in particular about updating Glass - Steagall and Article 65 respectively, have been slowed by political horse - trading. This is making worse a situation in which competition is keeping the prices of many financial services artificially low and capacity artificially great in a way that cannot be sustained for long. Systemic risk gets greater, not less, the longer the system is skewed. The point is long past at which regulators might have been able to force market practices back into the old regulatory framework. The global competitive and technological forces against them are too powerful. Neither is the option of turning back the clock through re - regulation feasible, and few regulators show signs either of wanting to undertake such a course, or of having the stomach for the political fight it would entail. Even in Japan, where regulators hold a sway over their industries that their counterparts in Europe and America can only envy, and where the financial system is being emerging new economy. This is being done with the grain of market forces, not against it.
1. Which "circle" do "the regulators have to square" according to paragraph 1?
A.To create a regulatory system that controls banks tightly enough.
B.To create a regulatory system that treats banks exactly like other financial institutions.
C.To create a regulatory system which limits financial innovations.
D.To create a regulatory system which provides a special position for banks.
A B C D
A
2. Which of the following sentences do you think is the first sentence of Paragraph 3?
A.The history of attempted bank regulation extends far back to the early days of the foundation of the Bank of England.
B.Bankers in America are complaining that proposed deregulation of financial institutions there will open the way to increase foreign competition.
C.Nonetheless, few foresee anything but the most limited merging of existing regulatory agencies, even within single countries.
D.Japan's central bank has just announced liberalised arrangements for banks wishing to raise more capital.
A B C D
A
3. The first sentence of the next paragraph is "Unsystematic deregulation has brought the sys- tem to its present ugly pass." You think the main topic of this paragraph will be:
A.a description of the faults of the present system.
B.a description of the positive points of the present system.
C.a description of the future changes in the system.
D.a description of the regulations controlling insurance companies.
A B C D
B
4. Which of the following are mentioned in Paragraph 5 as being problems in the present sys- tem?
A.Prices are too high and capacity too low.
B.Change is being stopped by vested interests.
C.Politics are preventing reform in some countries.
D.Risk is decreasing by keeping the present system.
A B C D
A
Types of risks
So far we have used the term "risk" rather loosely. One type of risk is default risk, that is, the risk that the borrower will simply not repay the loan, due to either dishonesty or plain inability to do so. Another type of risk, called purchasing - power risk, is the risk that, due to an unexpectedly high inflation rate, the future interest payments, and the principal of the loan when finally repaid, will have less purchasing power than the lender anticipated at the time the loan was made. A similar risk is faced by borrowers. A borrower may cheerfully agree to pay, say, 15 percent interest, expecting that a 12 percent inflation rate will reduce the real value of the loan. But inflation may be only 4 percent. A third type of risk is called "interest - rate risk" or "market risk", that is, the risk that the market value of a security will fall because interest rates will rise. We will discuss this further later; here we just present the intuitive idea. Suppose that five years ago you bought a ten-year 1 000 bond carrying a 6 percent interest rate, and tile interest rate now obtainable on similar bonds also have five years to go until they mature is 8 percent. Would anyone pay 1 000 for your bond? Surely not, because they could earn 80 per year by buying a new bond, and only 60 per year by buying your bond. Hence, to sell your bond you would have to reduce its price. But suppose the bond, instead of having five years to maturity, would mature in, say, ninety days, what would its price be then? It would still be less than 1 000 since the buyer would get 6 percent instead of 8 percent interest for ninety days; but since getting a lower interest sell for only ninety days does not involve much of a loss, the bond would sell for something close to 1 000. Hence, while holding any security with a fixed interest rate involves some interest - rate risk, the closer to maturity a security is, the lower is this risk. On the other hand, if interest rates fall you gain because your bond is worth more; and the longer the time until the bond matures, the greater is your gain. But the fact that you may gain as well as lose does not mean that you are taking no risk. Diversification All three types of risks are relevant for deciding what assets to include in a portfolio, and what debts to have outstanding. (The term portfolio means the collection of assets one owns.) Anyone holding more than one type of asset has to consider not the risk of each asset taken by itself, but the totality of the risk on various assets and debts jointly. Suppose someone holds stock in a company that is likely to gain from inflation. The riskiness of a portfolio that combines both of these stocks may be less than the riskiness of each stock taken separately. A port- folio consisting of assets that are affected in opposite directions by given future events is less risky than are the assets that compose it when taken individually. Hence a low-risk portfolio need not contain only assets that individually have little risk; sometimes one reduces the riskiness of a portfolio by adding some high - risk assets that offset the risks of other assets in it.
5. For Paragraph 1 choose the summary which you think best expresses the main idea.
A.The existence of inflation produces purchasing - power risk.
B.Purchasing - power risk involves a loss in the value of money loaned or borrowed be- cause of higher or lower inflation than expected.
C.Purchasing - power risk produced by an inflation higher than expected affects lenders only.
A B C
A
6. Choose the summary that best expresses the main idea of Paragraph 2.
A.If you have purchased a fixed interest - rate security, then both the cash - in value and the interest you receive remain constant throughout the life of that security.
B.Buying a fixed interest - rate security of a limited term is very risky because any interest rate changes will produce a loss of cash - in value.
C.Buying a fixed length security with a fixed interest rate means that the cash - in value of that security will change as interest rates in general change.
A B C
C
7. Choose the summary that best expresses the main idea of Paragraph 3.
A.The risk factor in a portfolio can be reduced by including assets whose risks are complementary, i. e. , if one loses value because of particular circumstances the other gains because of those circumstances.
B.One should try to eliminate all risks from one's portfolio by only buying very safe shares.
C.Under no circumstances should a careful investor add high risk assets to his/her portfolio even though the income or capital gain that may be received from that high risk asset could be very large.
A B C
A
8. Find words in the text that have the meaning of failure to keep an agreement:
A.default
B.lose
C.gain
D.anticipate
A B C D
A
四、英释汉
1. Statistics also means the methods used to calculate the summary numbers and to generalize from them.
统计也意味着计算汇总的收据并对其归纳的方法。
2. Inflation pressure were concentrated in a wide variety of markets for collectibles (including arts, jewelry and so on) and contributed to intense financial activity involving mergers and acquisitions.
通货膨胀的压力会影响收藏品市场(包括艺术品、珠宝等),并导致合并和收购等金融风潮。
五、判断正误
An auto loan
John Baker works in the loan department of a bank in Denver, Colorado. He is a loan of- ricer. Stanley Fanelli has an appointment with him now to ask about a loan. He needs money to buy a new car. Mr. B: Hello, Mr. Fanelli. Please have a seat. What can I do for you today? Mr. F: I want to borrow some money to buy a car. A friend of mine, Jack Richardson, bought a new car last week. He told me that he got his loan here. Mr. B: Oh yes. I remember him. I was the loan officer who spoke with him. Mr. F: He said that you were very helpful. I know very little about loans and I hope you can explain things to me. Mr. B: I will certainly try. What questions did you have for me? Mr. F: First, I want to know if loans for buying cars are commercial loans or personal loans. Mr. B: Neither, Mr. Fanelli. They're auto loans. A commercial loan is principal that banks lend to businesses. Personal loans are made to individuals, but not for buying cars. Mr. F: What about interest rates? Mr. B: The rate of interest currently in effect on auto loans is 16%. Mr. F: For how long will I have to make monthly payments? Mr. B: The term of the loan is three years, so there will be 36 monthly payments. Mr. F: Do I have to give the bank any collateral? Mr. B: The car serves as collateral. If you default, the bank can take possession of the car. The bank also checks your credit file to make sure that you always paid back your loans in the past. Do you have any charge accounts? Mr. F: My wife and I bought our furniture with our charge card and we even used it to buy airplane tickets for our vacation in California last year. We paid off both those debts promptly. Mr. B: That's very good. I assume there will be no problem. But the first thing you have to do is fill out this loan application. Mr. F: Thank you very much. I'll start right now. State whether each statement is true or false based on the dialogue between John Baker and Stanley Fanelli.
1. Mr. Fanelli needs a loan to buy his new car.
T
2. A teller gave him the loan.
F
3. Car loans are personal loans.
F
4. The tenure of auto loans is three years.
T
5. Mr. Fanelli doesn't have any charge accounts.
F
Applying for a mortgage
Susan Thomas and her husband Alan have decided to buy a house. They have seen one that they like and now have to get a mortgage loan. Susan goes to see Joan Bentley. Ms. Bentley works in the mortgage department of the Yorktown Bank in Texas, where the Thomases live. Ms. B: Hello, Mrs. Thomas. How are you today? I hear you want to apply for a mortgage loan with us. Mrs. T: That's right. I hope you have the time to answer some questions, though. My husband and I have never owned any real estate before and we have only elementary ideas about mortgages. Ms. B: I'll be happy to help you in any way I can. What would you like to ask? Mrs. T: First, is there any difference between a mortgage and a mortgage loan? I have heard both terms used. Ms. B: Yes there is, although in everyday speech people call the mortgage loan'a mort- gage. The mortgage is actually a written document. In legal terms it is called an instrument of conveyance because it transfers title of property from one party to another. The mortgage loan is, of course, the money that the mortgagee lends to the mortgagor so that the mortgagor can buy a house or some other piece of real property. Mrs. T: I see. That's clear to me now, but something has been worrying me. Many of my friends have told Alan and me that it won't be easy to get a mortgage. I don't know what they mean--Alan and I have always held good jobs. It seems that two good risks like us wouldn't have much difficulty in getting financing for a new home. Ms. B: The problem isn't the element of risk. The supply of mortgage money has become very tight lately. Also, with interest rates rising, banks don't want to lend a large sum of money for 25 or 30 years at a fixed rate. Mrs. T: When you mention fixed rates you remind me that I have been hearing a lot about variable - rate mortgages. I'm not quite sure that I understand exactly what they are, but people say more and more banks are using them now. Ms. B: I can explain them to you. In the past, the borrower or mortgagor paid the same rate of interest over the life of the mortgage. Monthly payments to the bank were the same for 30 years. But with variable-rate mortgages they can be adjusted every six months to changes in the interest rates banks pay on deposits. Mrs. T: That sounds very upsetting to me. What if the borrower gets a very large increase? How would he meet his payments? Variable - rate mortgages must greatly increase the possibility of the bank's foreclosing. Ms. B: Not really. The bank can't adjust the rate more than 1/4 of one percent for any six - month period. And most banks give an initial guaranteed - rate period of six months to five years. During this period, no adjustments are allowed. However, there's no limit to how much the rate that you pay can rise or fall over the life or the mortgage. Mrs. T: Why have banks begun to insist on variable-rate mortgages? The old system seems so much simpler. Ms. B: I'll admit it was simpler, but changes in conditions have made it difficult for banks to keep the system of fixed - rate mortgages. With certificates of deposit and other term - de- posit accounts, banks now pay very high interest rates to depositors in order to attract their money. These interest rates fluctuate, too, so banks want the protection of variable - rate mortgages. Mrs. T. Your explanation makes me feel more secure about variable -rate mortgages. How much does your bank expect as a down payment? Ms. B: Between 10% and 20% of the purchase price. Is that possible for you and your husband? Mrs. T: Yes. We have saved enough money for that. I would like to fill out an application. Ms. B: Fine. Here's one. We will be able to let you know whether we approve it or not in a week or ten days. Mrs. T: Thank you very much. Comprehension check State whether each sentence is true or false based on the dialogue of this lesson.
6. Susan Thomas can't get a mortgage because she and Alan are bad risks.
F
7. In the past, mortgage rates were fixed for the life of the mortgage.
T
8. With a variable -rate mortgage, the bank can raise the interest rate on the mortgage loan 2% per year.
F
9. The interest rate on a variable - rate mortgage fluctuates with changes in the interest rate the bank pays its depositors.
T
10. The interest rate on a variable - rate mortgage can only rise - it cannot fall.
F
七、写作题 Directions: Write a letter according to the following request, write your answer on the ANSWER SHEET.
We thank you for your letter of ××× With regard to your proposal of the establishment of direct business relations, we are wondering whether the volume of our business merits the establishment of such a direct relation- ship. As you may be aware of the fact that the volume of business between our two countries is rather limited at present. And the present procedure of directing your transactions to us through the Union Bank of Switzerland, Zurich can serve the purpose quite well. We shall certainly keep in mind your proposal and when need arises. We shall consider the matter. We sincerely hope that our frank expression will win your understanding.