卡梅倫晤丹麥首相

 英國首相卡梅倫12日在唐寧街首相府與到訪的丹麥首相拉斯穆森舉行會談，雙方就兩國關係、經濟以及阿富汗問題展開討論。

在會談後舉行的聯合新聞發布會上，兩國領導人表示，此次會見是卓有成效的，加強了兩國之間的關係。

在經濟問題上，卡梅倫表示，兩國都希望能夠大幅削減赤字，這也是英國和丹麥正在做的。因此，他們認為在一段時間內，歐洲的預算不應該增加，而應該減少。

拉斯穆森表示，他們現在所要做的就是盡一切力量，幫助國家的公共財政回到正軌，但這不是一項簡單易行的任務。大家必須堅持合理的經濟政策，保證經濟增長和社會繁榮。

此外，兩國領導人還呼籲建立更加自由的貿易關係和更加開放的市場，確保歐洲經濟增長。

在阿富汗問題上，卡梅倫和拉斯穆森表示，他們的共同目標就是要幫助建立阿富汗自己的軍隊和警察部隊。卡梅倫說，希望阿富汗能夠自己管理國家安全，以便於他們的軍隊能夠撤出。

拉斯穆森表示，他希望能在2014年至2015年從阿富汗撤軍，但這不是承諾，只是希望。他說，如果堅持他們的戰略，他確信能夠實現這一目標。

兩位首相計劃在秋季歐洲理事會上再次會面。
Source

失落的一代 8100萬青年沒頭路

• 2010-08-13
• 中國時報
• 【鍾玉玨／綜合十二日外電報導】

     　八月十二日是聯合國訂定的「國際青年日」，聯合國「國際勞工組織」（International Labour Organisation，ＩＬＯ）十一日發表《二○一○年全球青年就業趨勢》報告指出，受經濟危機衝擊，去年全球青年的失業率達一三％，廿四歲以下適齡 就業青年約有八一○○萬人未能就業，創下歷史紀錄。

    　《二○一○年全球青年就業趨勢》說，去年全球十五歲至廿四歲青年勞動人口約六．二億，其中八一○○萬人失業，失業率達一三％，寫下該數據 廿年來的新高，而且增長速度是廿五歲以上成年失業人口的兩倍。ＩＬＯ預估，由於今年經濟仍疲軟，全球青年失業率可能持續增至一三．一％，到了二○一一年才 會降至一二．七％。

    　該報告指出，全球金融危機對青年失業率的影響遠大於成年人口，且青年就業市場回溫速度也比成年就業市場緩慢。

    　報告示警說，已開發國家（包括西班牙與英國）和若干新興國家的部份年輕人，因對就業前景深感挫折，已索性放棄尋找工作，久而久之這些退出勞動市場的年輕人將淪為「失落的一代」，喪失經由就業改善生活的希望。

    　ＩＬＯ秘書長索馬維亞強調，青年是經濟發展的動力，放棄就業不僅是經濟上的浪費，還會影響社會安定。

    　報告也指出，全球九○％青年就業人口在開發中國家，只有一○％在已開發國家；但前者面臨不穩定的就業市場，處境更為脆弱。以往高學歷與專業技能的確能為年輕人敲開就業之門，而今卻不再是就業保障。此外，即使找到工作，薪水和勞動條件也不如以往。

    　據統計，全球約有一．五二億青年就業，但二八％每天平均收入不到一．二五美元，始終無法脫離貧困。

    　報告也評估德國、英國、西班牙、愛沙尼亞的勞動市場。其中，英國年輕人依賴父母的「啃老」現象在已開發國家中最嚴重，靠雙親供養者將近兩百萬人，比法國多四倍，比美國則多兩倍。

    　亞洲各國也有數量龐大的失業青年。在經濟長期低迷不振的日本，打短工的「飛特族」超過四百萬人。

    　至於在金融危機中飯碗不保的美國年輕人，則開始意識到儲蓄的重要。
Source

英國數萬名退休老人難享清福 返崗工作還債養家

2010年 08月 12日 16:19    中國窗

【香港商報】訊 環球時報特約記者李雪報道 英國《每日電訊報》網站8月12日發表文章稱，由于面臨沉重經濟負擔，英國許多老年人在過了退休年齡以後仍然選擇繼續工作，官方公布的統計數據顯示，65歲以上工作人口數量增長速度創出歷史新高。     統計顯示，過去3個月裏有超過4萬名65歲以上的老人加入勞動者大軍，使老人從業總數達到82.3萬，這是英國國家統計局自1992年開始 進行相關統計以來的最高水平，以往每季度增加數量不會超過2.6萬人。專家認爲，這些變化表明成千上萬的退休老人重新開始工作以增加收入，或者說他們的退 休金不足以維持現有生活。     這些最新數據從一個側面反映了經濟衰退對英國勞動力市場造成的影響，兼職工人和老年工人數量增加，而很多年輕人却失業長達兩年時間。政府養 老金政策顧問羅斯•阿爾特曼表示，“這反映出一些東西，對部分人來說延長工作年限幷不可怕，但如果他們是被迫這麽做，或者說他們沒錢享受退休生活，那顯然 就有問題了。明年情况會更嚴重，第一次嬰兒潮出生的人們將年滿65歲，這之後將有一批批的老人退休，我們迫切需要解决這一問題。”     獨立財務顧問公司分析師蘭斯•卡拉夫表示，“我們大多數人都想儘快退休，但許多人發現自己經濟上根本無法負擔。國家退休金少的可憐，而私人 退休金也不足以彌補缺口”。經濟衰退是導致退休人員財政狀况不佳的重要原因。就業基金會高級研究員威爾遜表示，“自2008年秋天以來，許多人退休金的實 際購買力都下降了20-30%，所以人們認爲這些錢不够，還得繼續工作。”很多老人繼續工作是爲了幫助子女或家裏的第三代。雜志編輯艾瑪•索姆斯表示，“ 許多人到了60或65歲時還要還貸，他們要麽是借貸太多，要麽是離异或爲了孩子再行借貸”。據統計，65至74歲的老人當中有12%仍有貸款要還。     英國老年慈善機構主管米歇爾表示，“即使處在經濟衰退期，65歲以上工作人口數量仍在穩步上升。他們中有些人選擇繼續工作是爲了一種滿足 感，而很多人則是爲了解决因經濟衰退受影響的收入問題。對于這些人來說，65歲退休的規定是一個威脅，政府應從明年起取消該規定”。英國就業和養老金部門 發言人表示，“許多老人希望在65歲以後繼續工作，他們擁有豐富的工作經驗和技術。我們希望解除規定退休年齡對他們的束縛，使想要工作的人們可以工作。通 過延長工作年限，他們能在退休後拿到更多的養老金。”     就業研究所負責人吉姆•希拉吉則指出，公共部門工作人員已經感受到職位稀缺帶來的壓力，“我們開始看到公共部門空餘職位急劇减少，如果這種 趨勢在未來數月裏繼續發展，整體失業率可能會上升，除非私營部門的經濟復蘇能够彌補公共部門嚴重的失業現象”。英國商會首席經濟師大衛•克恩表示，“雖然 最近勞動力市場趨勢良好，但要記住我們還沒有看到嚴厲的預算削减措施所帶來的負面影響”。英國商會認爲明年失業人數將達到265萬。 Source

英下修經濟成長 將推刺激政策

010-08-12 22:55:50

【新唐人亞太台2010年8月12日訊】英格蘭銀行調降英國的經濟成長預測，同時指出就算利率達在歷史低點，通貨膨脹率在２０１２年依然會落在２％的目標以下。英格蘭銀行可能會推出更多的量化寬鬆措施。

英國央行指出，通貨膨脹率在兩年以內將達到１．５％，低於２％的目標，經濟成長可能放緩到３％，低於５月預測的３．６％。英國央行表示，雖然受到銷售稅調 高的影響，明年的通膨可能加速，但是因為產能閒置，衝擊企業成本和價格，後年的通膨可能大跌到目標以下。這也意味著一旦經濟惡化，英國陷入通縮的風險加 大。
Source

經濟前景灰暗·老年人退休生活艱辛

8月12日英國各大報章多數以英國央行下調經濟成長預測作為頭版主題。

暗淡再暗淡
《獨立報》以「山雨欲來」作為標題大篇幅報道說，因為經濟增長緩慢、房價下跌、失業率上升、銀行不願借貸、消費信心低落，英格蘭銀行警告說，英國可能成為在全世界經濟受到金融海嘯中受打擊最嚴重的國家。
英格蘭銀行表示，下一年度的通貨膨脹也比原先預期的要高，因此可能還要經過很多年的時間，英國的經濟才能回到金融危機之前的水平。
《衛報》則是以反應敏感的股市作為報道重點。該報的標題是「越來越擔心經濟前景，所以股市指數下滑」。
倫敦金融時報百種股票指數昨天下滑的幅度是6個星期以來最大的。
該報還指出，雖然英格蘭銀行已經下調經濟增長預估，但是也有經濟學者認為，英格蘭銀行的看法可能還是過於樂觀。

出口悲觀
《金融時報》報道說，英格蘭銀行同時還下調了英國出口的增長預估。
報道說，主要的原因是像美國等主要貿易伙伴的經濟增長放緩，對英國產品的需求降低。
但是《金融時報》指出，今年4月到6月，就業市場工作機會創造率是21年來最高的。
不過，申領救濟金的人口卻沒有像原先希望地大幅下降，反而還出現了上升，不過7月份的失業救濟金申領人數稍微減少了大約3800人。

老來辛苦
雖說就業機會似乎有增加，但是《每日電訊報》報道說，年過65歲仍然繼續工作的人數激增。
主要的原因是退休投資基金的價值減少了兩到三成，還有許多65歲以上仍在工作的人是為了幫助他們的孩子和孫兒。
《每日電訊報》還報道說，每5個新增加的就業機會當中，就有4個被「外國人拿走」。
報道還引述英國國家統計局的數字，並說英國議會宣稱要徹底了解為何出現這種情況，而負責移民事務的次官格林則說，「英國政府相信移民可讓英國受益，但是移民人數不能沒有限制」。

穆斯林市場
中國被視為龐大市場已經很久了，那麼中國之後又是誰呢？根據《國際先驅論壇報》的報道，現在跨國公司把注意力轉到了穆斯林世界。
報道以一款洗發液為例，說明以生產洗發液等家庭用品知名的聯合利華公司，為必須經常帶頭巾、導致頭髮容易糾結的穆斯林婦女發展了專門以她們為訴求的洗發液。
報道引述牛津大學經濟專家的話說，過去中國和印度曾經引領風騷，現在則是穆斯林世界。
報道說，利頓紅茶、雀巢等跨國食品集團申請清真認證，雀巢旗下456家工廠有85%取得了清真認證。
這個清真食品市場規模有多大呢？《每日電訊報》說，估計年消費金額是2.1萬億美元。
Source

Lady Gaga敎你增進多益字彙力

不只是搞怪風

Lady Gaga敎你增進多益字彙力

 

文／周強

 

你不一定喜歡Lady Gaga的歌，你也不一定懂她的時尚品味，可是你絕對無法不對百無禁忌的她印象深刻！

 

爆紅的Lady Gaga，其服裝雖然怪異，但是她獨樹一幟、帶有挑釁意味的獨特穿著，卻引領時尚風潮，讓眾多好萊塢女星與全世界的女孩們爭相模仿。

 

Lady Gaga在MV裡面的電子音樂揉和流行音樂與舞曲，時而頹廢、時而狂野奔放，令人目眩神迷。短短兩年，她的兩張專輯竟有8首單曲不是登上冠軍就是大賣，使她成為流行樂壇的天后。最新單曲＜Alejandro＞（亞歷山卓）的MV更是造成的話題不斷！

 

多益的字彙力要如何積蓄？買一本字典回來，從A背到Z？買多益字彙書回來挑戰自己的意志力？其實不用這麼辛苦。運用「時事議題法」加上「字源分析法」兩者並用，您的字彙力可以跟著時人、時事、時語快速增加，而且趣味無窮。

 

這一期我們就跟著勁爆的百變女神Lady Gaga來學一些多益測驗會遇上的英文字彙吧！

 

Lady Gaga的商標：「立體」造型服裝

 

Lady Gaga的服裝永遠是媒體追逐的焦點。她的一頭閃光金髮與她的立體服裝造型已經成為她的註冊商標。她誇張的帽飾與服裝配件常讓人以為她來自未來世代，所以媒體稱她是：

 

→ Lady Gaga’s trademarks are her light blonde hairstyles and wacky three-dimension structured clothing.

 

本句中的“three-dimension”可不是她的「三圍」，而是「3D立體」。

 

英文的「商標」一字是“trademark honor”，它在英文裡是一個「複合字」，是由trade（貿易）加上mark（標誌）所組成。很多英文字都跟「標誌、標記」有關，像是：

 

「地標」是地形上的標記，所以叫做landmark

「胎記」是出生後身上的標記，所以叫做birthmark

「郵戳」是郵局蓋上去的標記，所以叫做postmark

「標記」是重要機構或品質的標誌，所以叫做hallmark

「水印」是像水紋一樣的標記，所以叫做watermark

 

英文裡的「複合字」不勝枚舉，同學如果看到一個複合字，應該要把其他相似的複合字一併找出，當可收「舉一反三」之效。比方說“light”是 「光線」，組合出“spotlight”（焦點）、“highlight”（精采之處、強調）、“skylight”（天窗）、 “headlight”（頭燈）、“greenlight”（許可）等等。

 

「3D立體」可是時下很夯的名詞，拜超級大片「阿凡達」之賜，3D的概念更是大行其道。請看以下例句：

 

Avatar is an excellent three-dimension film.（「阿凡達」是一部很棒的3D立體電影。）

 

“dimension”是個很長的字，要怎麼背呢？其實不用「背」，只要略加了解這個字的結構，同學不但可以輕鬆記住“dimension”，還可以記住許多相關的字哦！

 

dimension中的字根“mens”在英文裡與字根“meter”系出同源，都是「測量、衡量」的意思。字首“di-”是apart, away（分開），一個物體從長、寬、高三個角度分開來衡量，所以衍申“three dimension”是「立體」的意涵。

 

以下幾個字也是來自字根“mens”與“meter”，因此也都與「測量、衡量」有關係：

 

measure／immense／meter

 

“measure”這個字裡面的meas是字根“mens”的變形，它動詞的意義就是「測量」，而當名詞又加上s時，是「措施、步驟、方法」之 意。再配上名詞字尾的“-ment”就成了“measurement”(測量、尺寸)；measurement加上s就是女性的「三圍」。

 

“immense”這個字裡的字首“im-”＋mens，“im-”是表否定的not（不…的），比方說possible是「可能的」而impossible是「不可能的」。

 

“im-”＋“mens”也有「不能衡量的」之意，大到「不能衡量」就是「巨大的」的意涵，也就是“immense”的字意。

 

順道一提，“immense”也等於“enormous”，都是「巨大的」，此二字任何考試都常考！！

 

“meter”最常用的字義是「公尺」，公尺無非是測量的工具。巧的是，“meter”也是計量器，像是瓦斯表叫做“gas meter”，而路邊停車的計時收費投幣機叫“parking meter”。如果你知道K代表「一千」的話，那你應該不難猜出“kilometer”是多長了！

 

Lady Gaga的「頹廢」音樂

 

Lady Gaga的音樂裡有許多追名逐利、沉溺性愛的話題與裸露的畫面。她的大部分冠軍曲，像是＜Bad Romance＞（羅曼死），都有許多「頹廢」的訊息在其中，所以媒體稱她是：

 

→ Lady Gaga’s music videos are usually filled with decadent messages.

 

大概每個人都很想「頹廢」一下吧！英文「頹廢」是哪個字？「頹廢」是“decadent”，這個字因為在職場的環境裡較少使用，所以在以職場內容為導向的多益測驗中出現的機率較少，但是這個用來形容Lady Gaga的字卻很有趣，可以讓我們學到其他的字，因此值得一提！

 

“decadent”裡面有一個重要字根“cad”，它是「降落、落下（fall）」的意思，字首“de-”也是down（往下），像是“deposit、deduct、depress”。

 

人往高處爬，不進則退；自我放逐，往下沉淪墮落，因此「落下」的觀念衍伸為「頹廢」。字首“de-”加上“cad”再加一個形容詞字尾“-ent”，就變成了「頹廢」“decadent”，也就是fall down。由此可見英文造字之妙。

 

多益測驗雖不一定考“decadent”，但多學一個英文字與偶爾頹廢一下，無妨！

 

“cad”與“cid”是同樣表示「降落、落下」（fall）的字根，a與i僅是母音做變換。請看以下幾個重要的字是否覺得眼熟：

 

accident／coincide／incident

 

不錯，這些字都與「落下」（fall）有關。“accident”的字首“ac-”是to，字尾“-ent”是形容詞字尾。有東西忽然落下，必然很意外，所以ac＋cid＋ent的“accident”是指「意外事故」。

 

“coincide”的字首“co-”是together（一起），in就是on，兩樣東西同時落下在某東西上一定很巧，所以“coincide”是指「巧合」。它的名詞很常聽到：

 

What a coincidence!! （真巧！！）

 

“incident”也是同樣的道理，有東西落下、掉落的事情，意指「小事件、小插曲」。

 

Lady Gaga不穿褲子？！ → pantsless

 

Lady Gaga若是不穿褲子，這也未免太驚世駭俗了！但這裡的“pantsless”不是指不穿褲子，而是指不穿長褲。因為Lady Gaga喜歡穿緊身泳裝扮相的衣服，她的MV中又有許多內衣褲的穿著，所以時尚界稱她帶起一股女性「不穿長褲」（pantsless）的穿衣風。媒體更稱 Lady Gaga的「不穿長褲」風尚攻佔紐約市街頭：

 

→ Lady Gaga’s pantsless trend takes over New York City. 

 

“pantsless”在字典裡你是找不到這個字的！但是你只要知道“pants”是指長褲，又知道字尾“-less”是指「沒有…的」，應該不難一眼猜出！那還需要辛苦地去背誦“pantsless”嗎？！當然不必。

 

“-less”是一個很重要的字尾，配上許多我們耳孰能詳的字之後，又產生許多常用字，請看以下的例子：

 

“job”是「工作」；“jobless”是沒有工作的；“jobless rate”是「失業率」。

 

“sleep”是「睡覺」；“sleepless”是睡不著的；“Sleepless in Seattle”是電影「西雅圖夜未眠」的片名。

 

“end”是「結束」；“endless”是無窮盡的；“Endless Love”是電影「軍官與紳士」的主題曲：無盡的愛。

 

“stain”是「污漬、污斑」；“stainless”是沒有漬斑的，也就是我們所謂的「不銹鋼的」（沒有銹斑的）。看看你手錶的背面，一定有這個字！

 

英文裡常用的字尾約有30多個，像是“-able、-ory、-ment、-tude、-ness、-ive、-ity、-ent”等等，掌握這些常用字尾，再配合字首與字根的變化，你會發現英文字彙的世界非常有趣，而字彙的記憶變得輕而易舉。

 

字彙型的考題在多益測驗的閱讀部份中，佔有相當的比例。尤其在Part 5與Part 6中，更高達近百分之30到40。由此可見，出題的ETS也同意「字彙才是王道！」這句話。

 

所謂字彙型考題就是四個答案中，分別是四個不同字義的字，考生須有足夠的字彙力，才能選出正確的答案。考題的詞性類型以名詞、形容詞、動詞、副詞四大類為主。

 

試試看以下的多益仿真試題吧！ 

 

1. Lady Gaga makes use of technology-enhanced clothing to add a 　　　　 element to her stage shows.

(A) legal

(B) visual

(C) internal

(D) regional

 

【解析】

Lady Gaga的服裝不但造型立體，還加上現代科技。題意：她運用科技改良的衣服來替舞台表演增加視覺效果的成分。

 

本類型題目是「新多益」測驗考生字彙力的典型題型。選正確的形容詞，以答案(B)「視覺的」最適合。

 

答案(A)是「法律的、合法的」；答案(C)是「內部的」；答案(D)是「區域的」，皆不符句意。

 

2. Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance has been 　　　　 as the most watched video in YouTube history.

(A) supervised

(B) founded

(C) signaled

(D) revealed

 

【解析】

YouTube無人不知、無人不用。

 

題意：Lady Gaga的單曲＜Bad Romance＞（羅曼死）是自YouTube開台歷史以來，點閱率最高的影片。短短數月高達兩億人次。

 

本題也是字彙力的題型，要選正確的動詞。以答案(D)「顯現、顯示」最適合。

 

答案(A)是「監督、管理」；答案(B)是「建立」；答案(C)是「發出訊號」，皆不符句意。

 

3. The 　　　　 commercial nature of Lady Gaga’s music and image has inspired criticism.

(A) highly 

(B) mainly

(C) likely

(D) loudly

 

【解析】

本題是考正確題意的副詞。以答案(A)「非常地、程度很大地」最適合。“highly”在此與高度無關，而與「程度」有關。像是英文裡常用“think highly of”（看重）或是“speak highly of ”（讚揚）。

 

題意：Lady Gaga太過商業化的音樂與形象，已經引起批評。答案(B)是「主要地」；答案(C)是「可能地」；答案(D)是「大聲地」，皆不符句意。

 

Lady Gaga敎了我們「立體」、「頹廢」、「不穿長褲」三個字嗎？應該不止！只有Lady Gaga能敎我們英文字彙嗎？當然不！「時事議題法」讓你每天都跟著名人學英文字彙，而「字源分析法」讓你從一個字彙學到多個字彙；兩法並用，會有相乘相加的效果。

 

正在準備多益測驗的同學，暫停埋首書堆，與Lady Gaga來個空中相會吧，小心別愛上她的醜態（ugly）與病態（disease）呦！

 

I love your ugly! （我愛你的醜態！）

I love your disease! （我愛你的病態！）

（取自Lady Gaga的＜Bad Romance＞歌詞）

 

 Source

經濟學人力挽狂瀾的行銷策略

2010-08-11 18:17:00    

經濟學人周刊（The Economist）的行銷主軸為『閱讀經濟學人，會變得更聰明且更有見識。』，巧妙抓住讀者的不安全感及力爭上游的企圖心。    

（文／康健寧）近年美國雜誌市場大幅萎縮，美國最成功的新聞雜誌之一經濟學人，銷售量也難免下滑，在美國的報攤銷售量，由 2008 年的 7.1 萬本，下滑幅度接近三成（27 %）；此外，短期（六個月以內）的訂戶比率高達 45 %。經濟學人同樣面臨雜誌市場萎縮危機，力挽狂瀾的營運策略，包括，創新的行銷手法、高貴的價格及通路等。  　　

根據紐約時報的報導，經濟學人周刊（The Economist）的行銷主軸為『閱讀經濟學人，會變得更聰明且更有見識。』，巧妙抓住讀者的不安全感及力爭上游的企圖心。膾炙人口的訴求包括，1988 年「我從沒讀過經濟學人，42 歲的儲備幹部。」；2001 年「期待同學會。」；2004 年「從前有位上進的年輕人，沒讀過經濟學人，完了！」今年最新廣告訴求主軸為，「取得世界觀，讀經濟學人。」，不要再有鴕鳥心態，趕快讀經濟學人取得世界觀。  　　

相較於其他周刊新聞雜誌，降低出刊頻率（美國新聞與世界報導）及停止定期發行紙本雜誌（Life 雜誌），經濟學人堅持，維持周刊的高品質內容及高售價策略，年訂閱費超過 100 美元，遠高於新聞周刊的 39 美元及時代雜誌的 20 美元。經濟學人並慎選零售通路，包括走高階、高價路線的有機連鎖超市 Whole Foods 及Costco等。  　　

根據美國發行公信會（ABC）公布數據，經濟學人1982 年，全年發行量為 8 萬本，每周報攤銷量約 8,300 本，今年上半年，經濟學人每周平均報攤銷量約 5.2 萬本。相較於新聞周刊發行量，由 2000年 的 310 萬本，減至目前的 160 萬本；時代雜誌發行量，也從 2000 年的 410 萬本減至 330 萬本。顯示經濟學人的高售價策略，並未嚴重衝擊發行量。  　　

經濟學人美洲經理兼執行副總裁 Paul Rossi 表示：「和 Whole Foods 合作秉持不追求大量的讀者，界定讀者群的方式，不是依照人口統計數字，而是依照他們的想法。」Paul Rossi 同時指出，「如果我們把自己包裝成時髦的樣子，最終將會失敗。」總編輯 John Micklethwait 表示，「在日趨全球化的世界，經濟學人的長期成功以及與時代的關聯性，只會愈來愈強。」，公司高階主管營運理念清晰明確，更是經濟學人周刊力挽萎縮狂瀾的本錢。康健寧為資深媒體人）  

註：閱讀後有許多感想要抒發嗎？以下提供兩個問題讓大家思考： 

1. 你看經濟學人嗎？你覺得它好看在哪裡？ 

2. 經濟學人採用多種行銷策略，例如訂價、通路...，你覺得哪一個策略運用的最好，讓它可以緊抓住讀者目光？  
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Coming up for air

London's economy

Coming up for air

The capital has done better than expected

Aug 5th 2010

AS A recession spawned by a banking crisis struck two years ago, London looked acutely vulnerable because of its reliance on finance. The sight of distraught employees leaving Lehman Brothers’ glitzy office in Canary Wharf after the investment bank folded in September 2008 seemed to presage a similar collapse in the capital’s economy. But London has proved more resilient than expected, and there are signs that it will recover more swiftly than the rest of Britain.

A swollen financial sector was not the only reason why the capital seemed likely to take a battering in the downturn. Historically its economy has been more volatile than the rest of the country’s, suffering more in recessions but then outperforming when better times returned. London fared worse in the recession of the early 1990s and a decade later, after the dotcom crash, it slipped into a slump that the rest of the country avoided (see chart).

The recession of 2008-09 was far graver for the British economy as a whole than that of the early 1990s, and it was also more severe for London. But this time the capital did not suffer more than elsewhere; if anything the downturn hit London a bit less than it did the country as a whole. Despite forebodings about its dependence on finance, the capital’s post-industrial economy proved to be a boon rather than a bane. An attenuated manufacturing sector meant that London was spared the full effects of the sharp downturn in that sector during the world trade slump.

Now there are signs that the recovery is taking a firmer grip in the capital. One encouraging portent is that more people are using the railway network. The train-operating companies reported on August 2nd that passenger journeys in London and the south-east, which had fallen especially steeply in 2009, grew by 5.9% in the year to the second quarter, in line with the national increase of 6.1%.

Regional indicators of business activity compiled by Markit, a research firm, from reports from purchasing managers in both services and manufacturing paint a similar picture. They show that London took the lead as the recovery got under way. Since then the gap has narrowed but the latest reports, for June, still showed London just above the national average.

Consistent with this is the breakdown of the surprisingly strong figures for national GDP growth in the second quarter, when output rose by 1.1% compared with the first three months of the year. Financial and business services increased by 1.3% after a strong performance in the first quarter, during which output in services rose by 1% compared with overall growth of 0.3%.

That sudden surge in the second quarter is unlikely to be sustained. Even so, London could well outpace the rest of the economy over the next two or three years. Forecasts published in June by GLA Economics, a research unit that advises London’s government, show the capital outperforming the rest of Britain.

One boost will come from staging the Olympic games in 2012. The capital will also suffer less from public-spending cuts because the private sector is more dominant than in other parts of the country. Most important, it will benefit from its role as a world city. “London is far more tapped into the global recovery,” says Matthew Sherwood, an economist at Experian, a business-research firm.

Yet London is unlikely to outshine the rest of Britain by anything like as much as it did in the long boom that ended in 2008. Freewheeling financiers will, rightly, be shackled by tougher regulations, and manufacturing should benefit from the lower pound, which will help other regions. A less overmighty metropolis may be no bad thing. Britain would be a better place if growth were more evenly distributed around the country.

Britain 

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The Case Against Summer Vacation

By David Von Drehle Thursday, Jul. 22, 2010

Cass Bird for TIME

Recently I reread the adventures of Tom Sawyer after many years, and I was stunned to discover that Tom's summer vacation doesn't begin until the end of Chapter 21. Memory plays tricks. Tom's glorious idyll of mud, mild rebellion, chaste romance and rampant imagination electrified by a dash of danger and a blaze of heroismhad been filed in my mind under the heading of complete summer freedom. Even the most vivid scenes of Tom in school had been washed out by the brilliance of Tom barefoot and unbound. In reality, though, our hero spent much of his summer vacation pathetically bedridden with the measles. I mention this because my muddled recollection is a small version of a broad misunderstanding, a skewed view of childhood and summertime. We associate the school year with oppression and the summer months with libertyand nothing is more American than liberty. Summer is red, white and blue. It's flags and fireworks, hot dogs and mustard, cold watermelon and sweet corn. School is regimen; summer is creativity. School is work; summer is play. But when American students are competing with children around the world, who are in many cases spending four weeks longer in school each year, larking through summer is a luxury we can't afford. What's more, for many childrenespecially children of low-income familiessummer is a season of boredom, inactivity and isolation. Kids can't go exploring if their neighborhoods aren't safe. It's hard to play without toys or playgrounds or open spaces. And Tom Sawyer wasn't expected to care for his siblings while Aunt Polly worked for minimum wage.

Dull summers take a steep toll, as researchers have been documenting for more than a century. Deprived of healthy stimulation, millions of low-income kids lose a significant amount of what they learn during the school year. Call it "summer learning loss," as the academics do, or "the summer slide," but by any name summer vacation is among the most pernicious, if least acknowledgedcauses of achievement gaps in America's schools. Children with access to high-quality experiences keep exercising their minds and bodies at sleepaway camp, on family vacations, in museums and libraries and enrichment classes. Meanwhile, children without resources languish on street corners or in front of glowing screens. By the time the bell rings on a new school year, the poorer kids have fallen weeks, if not months, behind. And even well-off American students may be falling behind their peers around the world. (See pictures of boys at summer camp.)

The problem of summer vacation, first documented in 1906, compounds year after year. What starts as a hiccup in a 6-year-old's education can be a crisis by the time that child reaches high school. After collecting a century's worth of academic studies, summer-learning expert Harris Cooper, now at Duke University, concluded that, on average, all students lose about a month of progress in math skills each summer, while low-income students slip as many as three months in reading comprehension, compared with middle-income students. Another major study, by a team at Johns Hopkins University, examined more than 20 years of data meticulously tracking the progress of students from kindergarten through high school. The conclusion: while students made similar progress during the school year, regardless of economic status, the better-off kids held steady or continued to make progress during the summer, but disadvantaged students fell back. By the end of grammar school, low-income students had fallen nearly three grade levels behind, and summer was the biggest culprit. By ninth grade, summer learning loss could be blamed for roughly two-thirds of the achievement gap separating income groups.

During a June visit to the Argentine neighborhood of Kansas City, Kans., I received a quick tutorial on the realities of summer. I met a group of teenagers who were being paid through a private foundation to study writing and music and history for about 10 hours per week, and I asked them what they would be doing if the program weren't available. They told me about the swimming poolone public pool for all of Wyandotte County (pop. 155,000). They noted that their working-class neighborhood had a basketball hoop. And a soda machine. And that's about it. "There is an idyllic view of summer, but we've known for decades that the reality is very different for a lot of underprivileged kids," says Ron Fairchild, CEO of a nonprofit organization in Baltimore called the National Summer Learning Association. "We expect that athletes and musicians would see their performance suffer without practice. Well, the same is true of students."
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Fairchild and his organization are part of a growing movement to stop the summer slide by coordinating, expanding and improving summer enrichment programsespecially for low-income children. Supporters range across the political spectrum from Republican Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana to Democrats in the Department of Education under President Obama, who has created a National Summer Learning Day to call attention to the issue. Some of the nation's largest private donorsincluding the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Wallace Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and the Atlantic Philanthropiesare putting their muscle into the cause.

The romance of summer is so ingrained that this flock of reformers might remind some readers of another character from Tom Sawyer's world, the wealthy Widow Douglas, who "introduced [Huckleberry Finn] into society, no, dragged him into it, hurled him into it and his sufferings were almost more than he could bear. The widow's servants kept him clean and neat, combed and brushed ... The bars and shackles of civilization shut him in and bound him hand and foot." As our modern-day reformers strive to civilize summer as an educational resource, the trick is to seize the opportunity without destroying what's best about the season: the possibility of fun and freedom and play. (See pictures of kids' summer programs.)

Barriers of Cost and Culture
Experts believe that a majority of the 30 million American kids poor enough to qualify for free or reduced-price school lunches do not attend any kind of summer enrichment program. The obvious way to reach that large a group is through the public schools. And indeed, education reformers have been talking about lengthening the school year to make America's students more competitivefor at least a generation, going back to the publication in 1983 of the blockbuster report on our troubled schools A Nation at Risk. Long summer holidays are the legacy of our vanished agrarian past, when kids were needed in the fields during the growing season. Leaders in a number of states have tried to add days or even weeks to the academic calendar, but they quickly run into barriers of cost and culture. In this bad economy, state and local governments are cutting, not growing, their school budgets. And entire industries depend on the rhythms of summerthink travel, camping, sports and theme parks. They use their influence to keep summers as long as possible. In fact, the statute that prevents Virginia schools from reconvening early in August is known as the Kings Dominion Law, in honor of an amusement park north of Richmond. For these reasons, many summer-learning initiatives fall to an informal alliance of education entrepreneurs. In the bare basement of an old church on the Near Eastside of Indianapolis, a group of kids whose world is normally measured in city blocks were experiencing Italy one late-June morning. Some of the children were quietly writing newspaper articles about Italian life. Others were attempting the Italian tradition of family conversation at the dinner table. Still others were making cannoli, stuffing pastry tubes with a creamy, sweet cheese mixture. There's a summer discovery for you: Who ever heard of sweet cheese? (See pictures of a summer program for autistic kids.)

For some 80 elementary-school children in this low-income neighborhood, the summer of 2010 is as close to world travel as they've ever been. The all-day program at the East 10th United Methodist Church is built this year around a World Cup theme. Each week the focus turns to another country, and while the kids are exploring foods and landmarks and cultural traditions, they are, unwittingly, doing math as they measure ingredients and learning science as they raise vegetable gardens with plants native to each land. Fridays are for field trips; to study Australia's Great Barrier Reef, the kids rode buses to the aquarium in Chicago.
See the world's most influential people in the 2010 TIME 100.

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Mike Bachman is the executive director, a young man with clear eyes and obvious enthusiasm. "Everything that happens is enrichment. It all has an educational purpose, but we don't want the kids to think that they're in school," he explains. "We infuse the education into everything we do." That can mean sneaking leadership lessons into afternoon soccer games, teaching principles of fitness during outings to the local swimming pool or wrapping planning skills into preparations for a picnic at a state park. "It was the first time some of them had ever seen charcoal," Bachman says. Indianapolis is ahead of most cities in making better use of summer, according to Fairchild of the National Summer Learning Association. And that's mainly because a group of local philanthropies, led by the Lilly Endowment, decided in the 1990s to coordinate their efforts to provide safe places for children to go when they were out of school. In recent years, says Lilly's Willis Bright, the focus has increasingly been on "the learning element"a critical need, given that the Indianapolis public schools graduate fewer than half of their students. "But that doesn't mean you make it just another classroom," Bright adds. "You can teach physics with a basketball."

Together, 11 charitable organizationsranging from United Way to small family foundationspool about $3 million per year to support nearly 200 summer programs around Indianapolis. Not all of the programs are educational, but that's where the emphasis lies. Grants support everything from those buses to the Chicago aquarium to salaries of certified teachers to day-camp visits by professional artists and musicians to an urban garden created by retired biochemist Aster Bekele, where city kids explore plant science alongside Bekele's former colleagues from the Eli Lilly pharmaceutical labs. (See pictures of teens in class.)

Rather than engineer a vast new initiative, the strategy is to build on the city's existing patchwork of day camps, community centers, sports camps and summer-jobs programs. The activists hope to improve quality while keeping costs low, coordinate training for staff members and encourage a philosophy of educational enrichment. Over the years, Bright has seen a volunteer tutoring effort by 100 Black Men of Indianapolis grow into an all-day summer academy for some 200 students from kindergarten to eighth grade. Supported by the pool of grant money, academy students receive innovative math training through Project SEED, study music through the Young Audiences' Summer Arts for Youth and practice reading through an interactive software program called Ticket to Read. But it's not all desk work. The students know it's summer when they burst outside for tennis lessons and when they study the stars to understand how slaves navigated the Underground Railroad. Total tuition: $125 for seven weeks.

Meanwhile, a group of Indianapolis firefighters have gone from volunteering on ball fields to enrolling more than 100 students in an eight-week summer leadership camp named for St. Florian, the patron saint of firefighters. Each morning, the camp "cadets" study math, science, creative writing and public speaking. Afternoons are reserved for sports and field trips. Senior cadetshigh schoolersfocus on learning the skills they need for a job hunt: writing rsums, impressing an interviewer, dressing for success. "We keep up our learning so we don't fall behind," says Isaiaah Quarles, a buoyant 12-year-old with a cascade of dreadlocks. As Quarles escorted me through the camp, whip smart and charming, I could picture him persuading his friends to paint Aunt Polly's fence. I asked him how he would spend his summer if St. Florian Center didn't exist. Dismayed, he answered, "I would just be sitting at home."
See the top 10 everything of 2009.

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2005654-3,00.html#ixzz0wJsvt9T8

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Stealth Learning
I saw a lot of eager, engaged kids in Indianapolis and met a number of vibrant teachers and volunteers. But every camp and academy I visited had dozens of children stranded on a waiting list. And for each of those students, there were no doubt hundreds of kids whose parents had not even bothered to find a summer program and fill out an application. A recent study sponsored by the Wallace Foundation estimated that only 25% of students currently participate in organized summer learning programs, although a majority of parents said they would enroll their children if more programs were available. Fortunately, some public schools have begun to tackle the problem of summer learning loss. In Cincinnati, Ohio, a program called Fifth Quarter offers an additional month of classes, specially tailored for summer, at 16 schools serving low income students. Houston schools offer four weeks of math and science education for at-risk students and report that participants average a boost of more than 10% in their test scores.

In the Appalachian town of Corbin, Ky.home of Harland Sanders and his famous fried chickenthere was no one but the school district to fend off summer slide. Karen West, director of Corbin's Redhound Enrichment program, says, "Eighty-eight percent of our children live in latchkey families, and we have no YMCA, no Boys & Girls Clubs. Really, there was almost nothing for them to do." Hired in 2006 by the Corbin independent school district, West began building what is now a 10-week operation, running 10 hours per day, from the day after school lets out until the day before classes resume. Lessons in reading, math, science and social studies fill much of the day, but nothing about Redhound Enrichment feels like dreaded summer school. (See pictures from inside a public boarding school.)

Each summer, West builds on a theme. This year it's "Lights, camera, action!" Every week revolves around a subtheme, and for the week when Toy Story 3 was to open, West picked "To infinityand beyond!" On Monday, students took a field trip to watch the movie. Throughout the week, teachers integrated space exploration into their classrooms. On Friday, the kids put on a science fair, and a mobile planetarium paid a visit. The entire community of Corbin pitches in. Restaurants host meals at which students can practice etiquette. The swimming pool invites the kids each Wednesday. Baptist Regional Medical Center organizes the Longest Day of Play to promote health and fitness. The department of fish and wildlife leads a session on conservationthen takes all the students fishing. As the kids weigh and measure their catch, they think they're just trying to win first prize, but West notes that they are also doing a day's worth of math. Summer educators like to call this sort of thing "stealth learning."
"We have over 30 partners," West says, and their in-kind contributions nearly match her annual budget of $60,000. "When everyone gives a little, we can do miracles." The proof: students in the Corbin program not only don't fall behind through the summer; they move ahead. More than half of the participants improve by a full letter grade or more in both reading and math.
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For Fairchild, successes like the ones in Cincinnati, Houston and Corbin show the possibilities in a new approach to summer school. "That phrase has such a bad ring to it," he notes. "We need to push school districts to frame summer school as a good thing, something extra, not a punishment. There is a cultural barrier that we have to overcome. We're not the Grinch that stole summer vacation." With billions of dollars for improved education bulging from last year's economic-stimulus package, Fairchild hopes to persuade school districts across the country to steer some of the money into the neglected months of June, July and August. But a report by Education Sector, a nonpartisan research group in Washington, highlights a problem with relying on public schools for summer enrichment. "In the best schools, there would be an ample increase in academic learning time," author Elena Silva wrote. "But in poorly managed schools, with inexperienced teachers and a host of other challenges," a longer school year just means more lost days. If school districts fail during the traditional year, what are the chances that competence and creativity will suddenly blossom when the weather turns hot? In the best summer-only programs, bureaucracy is lean and change is easy. There's an informality to the summer culturemaybe it's those bare feet and damp swimsuits and homemade lanyardsthat fosters easy innovation and rapid improvement. As Terry Ogle, a former middle-school principal who runs the Indianapolis Algebra Project, told me, things happen more quickly outside school systems: "A few years ago, we were teaching kids at two summer sites. Now we're in 29." It was during a summer vacation from Harvard Law School that Earl Phalen had his first teaching experience, as a volunteer at an impoverished school in Jamaica. He says he knew immediately that "this was what I wanted to do with my life." But like many other big thinkers drawn to education in recent years, Phalen saw the existing public schools as a roadblock, not a career path.

So Phalen has become one of the country's leading education reformers by seizing opportunities to reach kids outside the traditional school day. One of his nonprofit ventures, Reach Out and Read, engages pediatricians to evangelize for literacy. His latest project, sponsored by an innovative Indiana undertaking called the Mind Trust, uses summer to make an end run around the ingrained habits and intractable bureaucracies of inadequate schools. (See the evolution of a college dorm.)

Called Summer Advantage, the program offers five weeks of intensive, all-day education to children from kindergarten to eighth grade. Phalen hires only certified teachers and chooses them on the basis of talent, not seniority. The curriculum ranges from math, reading and writing to cooking, dance and musicbut the consistent element is strong teachers working in small groups with excited students. I visited a Summer Advantage school in Indianapolis, and perhaps the best way to describe it is to say, first, that all the students are in economic and academic need and, second, that I wasn't there five minutes before a boy looked me in the eye and announced, "I'm going to be an aeronautical engineer." Summer Advantage is operating at a dozen sites across Indiana this year, serving some 3,100 "scholars," as Phalen insists his students be called. His goal is to enroll 100,000 scholars five years from now and to be "part of the cadre that changes the way this country does education." He has support from Washington, where a friend from Harvard Law now sits in the Oval Office. The U.S. Department of Education has put money into Summer Advantage, Phalen says, "because we're part of their agenda to prove that hiring teachers based on quality instead of seniority will produce good results." So far, the data look promising. Summer Advantage launched last year, and its scholars improved their performance on state math and reading tests by an average of 14 percentage points, Phalen says. On the basis of that, he projects that scholars who spend three seasons with Summer Advantage will raise their scores from an average baseline in the low 30th percentiles into the 70th percentiles in math and reading. (See the top 10 books you were forced to read in school.)

"If you want to drive the dropout rate even higher, just extend the school year by another 30 days," says Phalen. Instead, he argues, we should embrace the fact that summer is the opposite of school to make it the season of true educational reform. But here's the hard part: if summer enrichment is the innovative, cost-effective answer to one of the nation's thorniest problemsthe failure to educate many of our neediest kids how do we address so large a problem without creating another stultifying version of the failed status quo? How do we increase participation and raise standards without crushing creativity and imposing bureaucracy? Can we really entrust something so important to a haphazard network of camp counselors, volunteers and entrepreneurs? Well, maybe. In places all over the countryfrom inner cities to Appalachia, inside rec centers and church basements, on bumpy ball fields and pocked playgroundskids are learning this summer, and they're having a blast. While it's true that NASA runs one of the largest summer enrichment programs in the country, this isn't rocket science. If ever there was a movement suited to local experiments, informal innovations and seat-of-the-pants efforts, surely it's the campaign to squeeze more from summer. Because revolutions come from the grass roots, and everyone knows when grass is thickest.
In summer.
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Nuclear War

By Joshua Levine Monday, Aug. 09, 2010

 

ENLARGE PHOTO+

Fraternité? The EPR reactor under construction in Flamanville, France

Mychele Daniau / AFP / Getty Images

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2007285,00.html#ixzz0wJVNGZtb

Whenever the French are called on to justify their state-heavy approach to business, they can point with justifiable pride to what they call their filière nucléaire. This is the assortment of businesses that design, build and operate the 58 nuclear power plants that generate 75% of France's electricity. French President Charles de Gaulle willed the nuclear state into being in the late 1950s, and it grew up in his portentous shadow to become one of the brightest jewels in France's industrial crown. It has given the French, among other things, cleaner air and cheaper electricity than any of its neighbors have, not to mention an energy export worth nearly $4 billion annually.

France waited a long time for the rest of the world to warm up to nuclear power. Now that it has, the country is counting on seasoned nuclear veterans like the utilities Electricité de France (EDF) and GDF Suez and the nuclear plant designers and engineers Areva and Alstom to raise the tricolor atop reactors from Argentina (one reactor planned) to Vietnam (four reactors planned). Vinci and Bouygues, the construction giants that do much of the heavy lifting on France's reactor projects, would be expected to pour the concrete. With the world short of power, some 200 nuclear plants will be built (and another 300 are under proposal) in the next 20 years. (See pictures of French farms.)

But in this global nuclear summer, France's prospects have cooled. Not only has the French industry suffered an embarrassing setback overseas, but its nuclear grandees can barely stand to look at one another, its new European Pressurized Reactor (EPR) — the only one on offer — is a Rolls-Royce in a Chevy economy, and the first two EPRs are taking longer to build and costing far more than anyone dreamed.

The French have even started to wonder whether the very Gallic attitudes that have shaped the country's glorious past — among them, a confidence in France's prowess bordering on arrogance — may impair its future nuclear success. The French have never been gifted team players — witness the fratricidal frenzy that engulfed Les Bleus, France's once champion soccer team, during the World Cup. In the past, the filière responded on command to the government for the glory of French industry. But in a more market-driven world, French companies have become even less amicable. "It's very difficult to change something that goes so deep," says an executive at a leading nuclear supplier. "We're in the middle of the stream between a very centralized system and a very diverse marketplace, and we can't waste time. The competition is here."

The competition is from the U.S., South Korea and Japan, and each can assemble consortia to deliver turnkey nuclear plants with greater ease than France's bickering companies. Without a strong guiding hand, France's filière has a tendency to unravel in chaos and acrimony, as it did recently over a job in the United Arab Emirates, where the French were vying last year for a $20 billion contract to build four reactors. The U.A.E. craved France's nuclear know-how from the outset. The contract was France's to lose, and lose it France did. (See TIME's coverage of the World Future Energy Summit.)

The first problem was EDF. The U.A.E. badly wanted the big French utility to run the whole show, but EDF wanted no part of a desert project in a developing country. Instead, the disappointed U.A.E. got a leaderless consortium comprising Areva, GDF Suez, Alstom and oil giant Total, a nuclear wannabe. By the time the French government forcibly dragged EDF to Abu Dhabi in December, it was too late. "It was like the village of the Gauls in the Astérix comics," says an executive. "It was a complete mess — a mix of clannishness, personal ambition and hatred."

Two weeks later, the U.A.E. announced that a consortium led by the South Korean utility Kepco had snatched the prize. "Korea was very well organized, which was not the case with us," says Jacques-Emmanuel Saulnier, an Areva spokesman. "In Abu Dhabi, we learned that we have competitors and that they're pretty dynamic."

The disaster in the desert exposed other cracks in France's nuclear core. The French built all their reactors in the previous century. From 2000 to '04, they built exactly none. "Imagine an airplane manufacturer that didn't make any airplanes for four years," says a French nuke executive. (Read "The Green Politics Behind Nuclear Power.")

Meanwhile, the South Koreans and the Japanese — ever wary of their dependence on imported oil — have been steadily turning out nuclear reactors. Kepco is constructing two of the APR1400 reactors it sold the U.A.E. "The Koreans can point to a good record of building on time and on budget," says Steve Kidd, director of strategy and research at the World Nuclear Association.

It was partly to put its nuclear hard hats back to work that Areva agreed to build its first new-model EPR in Finland, at cost, for about $3.8 billion. That's also largely the reason the French are building a new EPR at home in Flamanville, with a third planned at Penly. The French team badly needs the practice — particularly EDF and GDF, which have no role in Finland's Olkiluoto reactor. (Finnish utility TVO is the operator there.)
Read "Nuclear's Comeback: Still No Energy Panacea."
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"We don't need Flamanville for France's energy consumption, and if we build another EPR at Penly, France will have 100 billion kilowatt-hours too many by 2020," says Dominique Finon, a director of nuclear research at France's prestigious think tank Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique. "It's a very expensive way to relearn nuclear."

Expensive, indeed. The Olkiluoto EPR is already set to cost almost twice its initial budget, and the meter is still ticking, while the start date keeps getting pushed back. The Finns announced in May that they've moved it again, this time from 2012 to 2013, four years late and counting. Flamanville is $1 billion over its $4 billion budget and a year late so far. (See pictures of the worst nuclear disasters.)

Areva says that's normal for the first units of a new design, and that's correct — to a point. There's also no doubt Olkiluoto has given France a black eye. Areva CEO "Atomic" Anne Lauvergeon has battled constant rumors that she would be fired, but she is expected to keep her job at least until her contract runs out in June 2011. Many people believe, however, that French President Nicolas Sarkozy would love to get rid of her. Lauvergeon, a celebrated executive who assembled Areva into a nuclear powerhouse, is not an easy target. "She's a scary adversary, not the kind of girl who will leave quietly," says an insider.

Another leading actor who has been trying to shove Lauvergeon offstage is Henri Proglio, whom Sarkozy tapped to run EDF last year. Proglio and Lauvergeon are currently bickering over Areva's Eurodif plant in southeastern France. Eurodif is the perfect symbol of the way the old filière nucléaire worked. It was set up under de Gaulle to enrich uranium exclusively for EDF in an era when price didn't really matter. But now it does, and EDF wants a better deal. That could end up costing Areva 1,000 jobs and causing a nearly $650 million operating loss before a new Areva enrichment plant comes onstream in 2013.

On the face of it, that's not an insurmountable problem — except that no one seems able to surmount it. The government has stepped in several times to reconcile its two fractious wards, since France owns 85% of EDF and 88% of Areva. All for naught. "Antipathy explains everything," says an executive for one of them. EDF and Russia's Rosatom agreed in June to cooperate on R&D, but Rosatom also makes reactors. Will EDF forge an even deeper partnership with one of Areva's big rivals? It is a very sensitive question. (Read "Is Nuclear Power Viable?")

France has set itself the ambitious goal of taking a third of the global market for new nuclear building — a goal the World Nuclear Association's Kidd calls "optimistic." France now has about 7%. To reach the goal, it probably needs a cheaper reactor in its product portfolio.
Overdesigned for the post-Chernobyl freak-out, the EPR can withstand earthquakes, airplane crashes and missile strikes, among other disasters. This is very reassuring — and very expensive. "The reactors we have are a little too elaborate," says Paul Rorive, corporate director of nuclear activities at GDF Suez. "Does everybody really need all those options?" An Areva executive estimated that megawatt for megawatt, the EPR is probably 25% more costly than Kepco's APR1400.

Team France might have had a better shot in Abu Dhabi if it had pitched the smaller, cheaper Atmea1 reactor designed jointly by Areva and Japan's Mitsubishi. Although the reactor exists only on paper, Jordan has approved the design for an upcoming bid, and GDF Suez will try to close the deal next year. Areva wants to build it. "We need the Atmea because our clients need it," says Areva's Saulnier. (Read "Nuclear Wares.")

The industry also needs leadership. A long-awaited study commissioned by the French government was finally released last week. Following its recommendation, the Elysée Palace announced that EDF will henceforth be the undisputed leader for France's nuclear export program. The government also made clear that it wants EDF to buy as much as 15% of Areva, which is pretty much guaranteed to ruin Anne Lauvergeon's day.

De Gaulle, France's postwar nationalist icon, is enjoying a surge in popularity these days. The French miss his single-minded, stubborn willingness to put what he saw as France's interests before petty concerns. But there's no reverting to the nuclear model he molded. Moreover, it would be a big mistake for the state to right this listing ship by taking back the tiller.

"Everybody is trying to find his place. I don't even know what the filière nucléaire means anymore," says Rorive. "The old model worked for 40 years. But the world is different now, and perhaps it's time to change it." Individually, the parts of France's nuclear enterprise are some of the best in the world. Now France just has to figure out how to make them add up to a whole that isn't less than their sum.
See innovators of renewable energy.
See the top 10 green ideas of 2009.

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【匯市新聞】英國7月Nationwide消費者信心指數降至56，連續3個月下降

2010/08/11 09:28
財華社深圳新聞中心
全英房屋抵押貸款協會(Nationwide Building Society)周三(8月11日)公布數據顯示，英國7月Nationwide消費者信心指數連續第3個月下降，7月英國消費者對國內經濟前景及就業市場持愈加悲觀態度。

公布的數據顯示，英國7月Nationwide消費者信心指數降至56.0。

此前公布的數據顯示，6月英國消費者信心指數自5月的66.0降至63.0，為連續第2個月下降。

若消費者信心持續下降並導致支出減少，那麼英國經濟可能會出現雙底衰退。該國經濟於2009年最後3個月擺脫衰退，此前連續6個季度收縮。
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BP賠償基金或能了卻漏油事故 變賣資產緩解財務壓力

2010年08月11日 07:23   來源：經濟參考報   閆磊

 

隨著英國石油公司(BP)200億美元墨西哥灣漏油賠償基金的方案獲得美國司法部認可，首期30億美元已經到位，加上封堵工作進入收尾階段，漏油事件正走向尾聲。 　　分析人士認為，鉅額的清理和賠償費用令B P陷入鉅額虧損的境地，但由於主營業務增長強勁、大舉變賣資產、油價仍在相對高位徘徊，公司應該能安然渡過此劫。
　200億美元賠償基金敲定
美國司法部和英國石油公司9日宣佈，雙方已談妥英國石油公司200億美元墨西哥灣漏油賠償基金的到位方案。英國石油公司已存入首期30億美元。
按計劃，英國石油公司將於2010年第四季度存入第二筆20億美元賠償基金，接下來每個季度存入12 .5億美元，直到200億美元基金全部到位。分批註資是為確保自身財務穩定，不致嚇跑投資者。
美國司法部副部長托馬斯·佩雷利說，司法部為首期賠償基金到位感到高興。英國石油公司“為履行對總統、墨西哥灣居民和企業主的承諾邁出重要一步”。他告訴美聯社記者，英國石油公司存滿200億美元賠償基金前，還需要確保在出現必要情況時，能夠支付相關費用。
英國石油公司先前說，首期賠償款預計9月底前到位。對提前存入款項，BP下任首席執行官鮑勃·達德利說，這進一步證明英石油解決墨西哥灣漏油事件的決心。
同一日，美國原油泄漏事件救災總指揮薩德·艾倫稱，英國石油公司的減壓井工程已接近尾聲，減壓井可望在本週末之前與漏油油井交匯，開始對漏油的“底部封殺”。據艾倫說，如果天氣情況理想，本週末之前減壓井就能與漏油井交匯，從而開始對油井的“封殺”行動。
“減壓井”被認為是徹底解決漏油問題的最可靠方法，其具體做法是在漏油井附近鑽“減壓井”，借助減壓井的連通性，注入泥漿和水泥，以達到永久性封死漏油井的目的。
BP應對鉅額賠償心裏有譜
美國白宮能源和氣候變化政策顧問卡蘿爾·布勞納日前在全國廣播公司電視節目中說：“英國石油公司必定要承擔責任，經濟上將受重罰。”
雖然美國政府聲稱重罰，但面對百億美元的賠償，BP此番已做好充分準備。公司今年第二季度財報顯示，計提322億美元準備金應對墨西哥灣原油泄漏事故。
英國石油公司9日在一份新聞公報中說，該公司清理墨西哥灣漏油的支出目前已達61億美元。目前公司接到的索賠要求超過14.5萬份，其中超過10.3萬份已支付，賠償金額達3.19億美元。據悉，往後的索賠案賠償將從200億美元的賠償基金劃取。
自4月漏油事故發生以來，涌出的原油量大約為490萬桶，其中約80萬桶被吸油船回收。根據美國《潔凈水資源法》，一旦受罰，BP繳納的罰金數 額最低為每桶1100美元。如果疏失罪名成立，罰金可能升至每桶4300美元。按照這一最高額度計算，英石油將為410萬桶流入海中的原油繳納176億美 元。即是說公司目前已知花費和預計賠償的總計“240.19億美元”完全在公司的預計範圍中。
　變賣資產緩解財務壓力
另外英國石油公司正在抓緊出售資產以保證賠償和集團日常經營。英國石油公司發佈第二季度財報時宣佈，公司未來變賣的資產規模將從100億美元增加到最多300億美元，超過2009年公司總資產(2360億美元)的1/10。
已有報道稱，新上任的首席執行官羅伯特·達德利日前提議向俄羅斯石油公司出售其在越南、巴基斯坦和委內瑞拉的項目。而且，BP近日已同意以70 億美元的價格把該公司在美國、加拿大和埃及的油氣田出售給總部設在休斯敦的阿帕奇公司。除了賣家當換錢外，BP自身的造血能力依然強勁，而且有著油價在高 位的支援，公司的前景已不像漏油事故之初那樣岌岌可危了。
據總部設在新奧爾良的H ow ardW eil能源投資公司分析師費爾南德斯計算，英國石油公司很幸運，他是極其賺錢的石油工業大鱷，只要原油價格保持在每桶60美元以上，他就能夠賠付得起在墨 西哥灣的所有損失，而且同時能夠拿得出一部分利潤給股東分紅。更何況英國石油公司還給自己上了保險。所以，僅從收支的角度來看，英國石油公司不會因為無力 支付鉅額賠償金而破產。
據《華爾街日報》報道，不包括現有庫存價值損益及此次石油泄漏成本等特殊項目的供應重置成本，英國石油第二財季利潤達到49.8億美元，較上年同期的29.4億美元增長近70%，業績增長依然強勁。

（責任編輯：王思翔）

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騰龍說事：荒唐的職稱背後

BBC中文網 騰龍

"視覺清潔經理"是幹什麼的?

垂直運輸工程師，空間顧問，廢物管理與處理技師，這都是幹什麼的？

大學時代的老同學來愛丁堡交流進修6 個月，路過倫敦小聚。闊別20多年，互問混得如何？老同學甩出一張名片。
老同學的名片比BBC給我印的名片大了一圈兒，上面密密麻麻印了不少頭銜。以「中華」打頭的協會就有倆，下面省市各級機構若干，帶「長」字的頭銜好幾個，「理事」一大串。

不管是名片還是名騙， 至少看得懂

「行啊」，我感嘆一聲，卻不知道再說什麼。我的名片上，頭銜就一個字：「producer」。
老同學趕緊打哈哈：「空有虛名，空有虛名。名片，明打明的騙嘛，不能太當真。」
名片一面是中文，一面是英文。英文翻譯好幾處用的詞莫名其妙，讓人摸不著頭腦。我說要不要改一改，好讓人知道你的來頭。老同學說，咳，這不過是在家唬唬人，在英國蒙誰呀，算了。
老同學名片上的頭銜雖然有點兼職過多之嫌，但至少明明白白，一看就知道是幹什麼的。職稱英文翻譯的莫名其妙，倒觸發了我一個憋了許久的感慨。
瀏覽英國公司機構、地方政府、職業介紹所的招聘廣告，上面列的工作職稱往往讓人猜不透是幹什麼的。這當然不涉及英文翻譯問題，可用的英文詞同樣讓人莫名其妙。

精神鼓勵，畫餅充飢

不信，除了文章開頭列出的，再猜幾個：
教育中心營養品生產助理，收入保護官；解讀性教學協調員，全方位補充控制員…
猜不出來？那就煩勞接著讀拙文，我這就揭「謎底」。
其實，這些都是日常最普通、最常見的工作，卻給起了個顯得最不普通，最稀罕的新名字罷了。
於是，開電梯的就成了「垂直運輸工程師，Vertical Transport Engineer」，超市裏給貨架上貨的伙計便擔當起「全方位補充控制員，Ambient Replenishment Controller」的重任。
有人爭辯說，隨著社會的發展，許多工作不再只是需要單一的技能或只有單一的內容，要以新的名稱反映工作性質的複雜。所以，圖書管理員就變成了「信息諮詢員，Information Advisor」。
或許有一定道理。但多數情況下，給簡單平凡、甚至是單調枯燥的的工作帶個大帽子，不過是讓它顯得更重要，讓人感覺好點。特別是經濟衰退，沒有獎金，甚至工資也要連年凍結的前景下，至少能給點精神鼓勵。
雖然工資不長一分錢，但「解讀性教學協調員，Coordinator of Interpretive Teaching」聽上去至少比博物館講解員顯得更重要。「視覺清潔經理，Vision Clearance Executive」比說自己是擦窗戶的要神氣多了。

不分尊卑貴賤，「政治正確」是首要

走火入魔的「政治正確，political correctness」，往往首先反映在工作稱呼上。這是各種莫名其妙頭銜推陳出新的又一個主要因素。
職稱頭銜不能顯示出工作的尊卑貴賤，不能有引起種族、性別、年齡等等歧視的任何嫌疑。
於是，小學裏招呼孩子們吃飯的「廚娘，dinner lady」這個傳統稱呼，就顯得不夠「政治正確」，而要冠以「教育中心營養品生產助理，Education Centre Nourishment Production Assistant」的高帽子。
記 得80年代初，中國大陸有一個相聲段子，大致是說一個人對自己掃大街的工作羞於啟齒，謊稱自己是搞音樂的，因為整天跟「索、拉、西」（掃垃圾）打交道。要 看看今天英國招垃圾工的廣告，跟說相聲的也差不多了：「廢物管理與處理技師，Waste Management and Disposal Technician」。
有些職業，傳統上容易引起偏見甚至憎惡，也需要起個更好聽的名字 予以「美化」。於是，查票的就成了「收入保護官，Revenue Protection Officer」；「空間顧問，Space Consultant」跟航空航天扯不上邊，而是賣房子的推銷員；打電話兜售家庭人壽保險，那就得自稱是「家庭保護顧問，Family Protection Consultant」了。

官僚冗員，因人設位

英國各地方政府從我等納稅人頭上征收的「地方政府稅」加起來是一筆巨款。納稅人的錢是怎麼花的，花到哪了？看看地方政府的招聘廣告，有時候的確讓人犯琢磨。
英國公共開支監督機構「納稅人同盟，the Tax Payers Alliance」定期發佈它認為的「虛職」。
它列舉的一個典型例子是，一個地方政府要招聘「物有所值總經理助理，Assistant Chief Executive for Value for Money」，專職搞節約，年薪5萬英鎊。不設這個職位，不先省下5 萬英鎊麼？
不 過，嚴重的經濟緊縮，是否會讓膨脹的職稱頭銜也跟著「縮水」？英國智囊機構「政策交流，Policy Exchange」的負責人埃文思（Natalie Evans）認為會的：「人們到底在做什麼以及他們的頭銜會更加受到關注。大幅削減開支使得公共和私營部門都不得不集中資源保護中心業務。所以這些奇怪的 職稱會自己銷聲匿跡的。」
會嗎？大家不妨看看招聘廣告，看到了看不明白的，拿來與大家分享。
Source

經濟學人:倫敦房價依然上漲 / Mr.X譯

房地產律師Edward Mermelstein表示，如果在這個夏天如果你在倫敦飯店聽聽到俄國人的聲音，他可能不是再度假，而是在處理房地產，並且把他的家人留在俄羅斯黑海城市索契Sochi，或是在法國南部渡假勝地St. Tropez聖多佩斯的遊艇上。

倫敦豪宅市場自2009年1月以來，呈現供不應求得狀態，除了在去年夏天較差之外，可能是俄羅斯人正在經營其他業務。英鎊貶值和低利率使得大量買家進入市 場，推升房價走高。倫敦房地產仲介公司Knight Frank在Belgravia地區的負責人表示，過去13個月，已經賣了15間超過一千萬英鎊的房子，大部分都是賣給外國人。

超豪華的房子主要是被資源豐富的俄羅斯和哈薩克的買家買走，其次是阿拉伯聯合大公國。對頂級的買家而言，即使最近英鎊走強，他們不會因此縮手。因未帶出售的房地產相對稀少，部分原因是在2008年9月金融海嘯過後，豪宅的裝潢暫時停止

事實上，房產供給容易被控制，價格超過一千萬房產的賣家通常選擇觀望。自今年三月以來便是如此。自五月以來，由於房價漲太快，使得買氣縮減。

即使如此，Mermelstein認為美國景氣復甦比英國更明顯，但是倫敦豪宅價格還是超過曼哈頓五成以上。他認為最主要的原因是倫敦距離東歐的超級富豪較近。

即便如此，Mermelstein先生認為儘管美國似乎在復蘇的道路上走的更遠，但是倫敦高檔住宅至少比曼哈頓高50%。他認為這主要因為倫敦更加毗鄰東歐地區的超級富翁。

倫敦平均房價令人驚訝的堅穩。從根據官方表示，至今年六月為止，倫敦房價上漲12.2%，而英國其他地方只上漲了8.4%。倫敦房價比英國全國均價 高出一倍以上。上漲的原因主要來自於倫敦東區舉辦奧運會區域房價上漲的壓力。自2005年7月倫敦獲得奧運舉辦權後，該區房價已上漲25.7%。倫敦房價 看起來似乎不受地心引力的影響。
Source 


經濟前景未卜 英房價走跌
 【8/10 22:15】

〔中央社〕英國皇家特許測量師學會今天指出，由於民眾對經濟前景感到不確定，買房意願減低，英國出現自去年7月以來房價首次下跌。

皇家特許測量師學會（Royal Institution ofChartered Surveyors）指出，今年7月至少8%的仲介商回報房價下跌，這與6月份時8%的仲介商指出房價上漲，是明顯對比。

一位學會會員指出，民眾擔心出現第2次經濟衰退，加上銀行放款的資金仍不足，民眾的信心偏低，住宅用房地產市場因此受到衝擊。

另一方面，英國零售商協會（The British RetailConsortium）指出，7月份零售業績增加0.5%，主要因為食物價格上漲，整體表現低於6月份的1.2%增幅。

報告指出，包括傢俱、地毯等大件物品的銷售都下跌，銷路下跌最多的是大型平面電視螢幕。

零售協會秘書長羅伯森（Stephen Robertson）說，政府計劃大砍公共支出，明年初又將提高加值型營業稅（由17.5%提高到20%），都影響消費者對經濟前景的信心，「大家必須把錢花在刀口上」。

倫敦股市以藍籌股為主的「金融時報100種指數」（FTSE 100），到下午2時30分左右，下跌32.93點，來到5377.59點，跌幅達0.61%。 

Source

 

英國6月全球產品貿易赤字縮減超過預期

英國國家統計局10日公布的數據顯示，英國6月產品貿易赤字縮減至74億英鎊，預期為赤字78億英鎊。其中進出口總額均達到近兩年最高水平。

綜合媒體8月10日報導，英國國家統計局10日公布的數據顯示，英國6月全球產品貿易赤字縮減超過預期，因為進出口價值均增至近兩年來最高水平。

6月產品貿易赤字由5月向下修正后的80億英鎊降至74億英鎊，經濟學家預期中值為赤字78億英鎊。

 

6月出口月升4.3%至224億英鎊，為2008年7月以來最高水平。對非歐盟國家的出口達到1998年開始記錄以來的最高水平，對美國的出口也達到1988年開始記錄以來的最高水平。
6月進口月升1%至298億英鎊，為記錄以來次高水平。2008年7月的310億英鎊進口額是記錄最高水平。

英國6月與非歐盟國家的產品貿易赤字由5月的45億英鎊縮減至43億英鎊，與歐盟國家的赤字也由35億英鎊縮減至31億英鎊。

英國6月的貿易赤字總額由38億英鎊降至33億英鎊，為2月份以來最小赤字水平。6月服務貿易盈余由42億英鎊縮減至41億英鎊。
(李愛娟 編譯)
Source

英國房價一年來首現下滑 英鎊跳水

2010年08月11日 03:31 來源： 上海證券報




由於一項重要的住房指標出現一年來的首次下跌，英鎊兌美元10日盤中大跌0.9%，投資人擔心英國經濟會失去增長動能。 

英國皇家測量師協會（RICS）週二公佈的調查結果顯示，由於需求減少，同時供應大量增加，英國房價7月份出現一年來的首度下滑。

7月份，接受RICS調查的英國房產經紀人中，表示房價下跌的比那些認為房價上漲的多出8個百分點。而在6月份，情況恰恰相反，認為房價在漲的比認為房價在跌的多出8個百分點。
同時，預計房價在未來幾個月會下跌的受訪者人數，比看漲者的人數多出28%。6月份這一數字僅為6%。
另外幾家機構發佈的最新報告也顯示，7月份房價出現下跌。與此同時，來自英國銀行業的資訊顯示，7月份商業銀行發放的住房按揭貸款有所下降。

有分析認為，上半年英國房價的上漲可能難以持續，隨著住房供應大量增加，下半年英國的房價可能再度下跌。有機構預計，英國樓市在2012年前難以完全恢復。7月份，儘管住房市場銷售疲軟，但住房供應則以三年多來最快的速度增加。

住房市場再現頹勢，令外界對於英國經濟的復蘇憂慮陡增。在上述數據發佈後，英鎊兌美元應聲大幅下挫。截至北京時間週二18時55分，英鎊兌美元大跌0.9%，至1.5750的一週低點附近，跌幅則為近一個月來之最。
儘管英國經濟第二季度出現四年來最快的增長，但近期包括房地產、製造業以及服務業等各項指標都顯示，增長動能在減弱。在上周的議息會議上，英國央行繼續維持利率在0.5%的歷史最低點，同時保持2000億英鎊的債券收購計劃不變。經濟學家認為，央行11日很可能下調對經濟增長的預測。按計劃，英國央行行長金恩11日將召開新聞發佈會，宣佈央行最新的季度經濟預測。

今年第二季度，英國經濟增長1.1%，幾乎為第一季度增速的四倍。不過，7月份開始，英國的製造業活動卻出現降溫。週二公佈的一項零售數據也顯示，7月份英國的零售銷售增長大幅放緩。
英國零售業聯盟（BRC）週二公佈的調查顯示，因消費者擔心政府即將採取的財政支出削減舉措，英國7月零售銷售增長速度大幅放緩。BRC表示，7月英國同店零售銷售總額較上年同期增長0.5%，遠低於6月份1.2%的增幅。
Source 

房價下滑令英國經濟擔憂升溫

 鉅亨網新聞中心　(來源：世華財訊)　2010-08-10 17:05:18

RICS調查顯示，英國7月房價出現今年以來首次下滑，因大量賣房人涌入市場，而買房人則愈加謹慎，買方市場回歸將令國內尚處脆弱的經濟波動性加重。  

綜合媒體8月10日報導，英國7月房價出現2010年以來首次下滑，因仍有大量賣房人涌入市場，而買房人則顯得更加謹慎。  在房價復甦令市場十分驚訝，并令國內銀行壓力減輕后，買方市場的回歸將可能令國內尚處脆弱的經濟波動可能性加重。  英國商務大臣凱布爾(Vince Cable)也曾承認國內經濟有雙底衰退風險，并指出，政府作出的經濟雙底衰退風險比率為20%或25%。而其之前預期為遠低於50%水平。  

英國皇家特許測量師學會(Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, RICS)10日公布報告稱，英國中部、威爾士及英格蘭北部房價降幅最大。上述地區主要依靠公共支出，并將可能出現大幅削減預算局面。  

 RICS發言人佩里（Ian Perry）稱，該機構預期為，英國房價下滑趨勢將在下半年繼續存在。  該份調查中接受調查的25%測量師稱，英國房價第二季度下滑，而11%的測量師稱，同期房價上漲。經季節因素調整后，-8的差值是RICS所編制數據一年來首次顯示房價下滑。  

RICS的該次調查暗示，在買房人行為愈加謹慎時期，大量賣房人涌入市場導致導致房價下滑。  

在房屋信息包（Home Information Packs）機制引入之前，新增加的賣房指令達到此前10多年來最高水平，而同時房地產經紀人稱，新增加的買房意愿下滑。  

很多房地產經紀商稱，購房人正努力提高抵押融資，而房價如果繼續下滑，抵押房屋負資產難題將會出現。  而國內銀行上半年實現盈利增長，得益於現有抵押貸款的撥備率下滑，以及對房價將趨穩的預期。  勞埃德銀行集團（Lloyds Banking Group）近期稱，其預計2010年英國房價將趨穩，2011年將增長3%。  

倫敦房地產經紀商預計，房屋市場將上漲，其中部分地區房價將超出2007年峰值，但對近期房價走勢持謹慎態度。但更多經紀商預計，英國房價將在下半年下滑。  英國房屋市場放緩將增加英國央行（Bank of England）面臨的不確定性，因為英國央行正努力衡量國內經濟復甦的前景。  (李軍偉 編譯) 

Source

《國際金融》成功行銷，經濟學人大賣

 

• 2010-08-10 08:17
• 時報資訊
• 【時報-外電報導】

專門報導時事與經濟議題的英國《經濟學人》（The Economist）雜誌原本只吸引產業人士閱讀，但25年來在行銷團隊努力之下，逐漸成為人人追求社會地位的必看讀物，使其在對手眾多的北美周刊市場屹立不搖。 　紐約時報報導，總部設於英國的經濟學人自1981年開始在北美發行，至今北美發行量成長10倍以上，但一路走來並不容易。

經濟學人內容屬於枯燥的社會科學領域，但其品牌主管與廣告公司BBDO卻以獨到的行銷手法扭轉讀者的刻板印象。如今不僅金融從業人員人手一本經濟學人，就連都會年輕族群也認為閱讀經濟學人能凸顯自己的聰明才智與社會經歷。

經濟學人在美國建立的品牌形象如同其廣告文宣一般強烈直接。1988年，該雜誌廣告寫道：「我從來不看經濟學人─出自1名42歲受訓幹部。」 2004年的廣告文宣則是「很久以前有1個充滿抱負的年輕人，但他沒有讀過經濟學人。故事結束。」廣告文強烈暗示，未讀過經濟學人社會地位只能停留在原 點。

哥倫比亞大學商學院助理教授普朗莫（Joseph Plummer）表示：「他們不斷暗示，只要你閱讀經濟學人就會顯得比一般人更聰明世故。」這樣看似平常的廣告訴求卻切中現代人在競爭中追求社會地位的渴望。

1982年經濟學人向美國發行量公信會提供的資料顯示，該雜誌每周發行8萬冊，而書報攤約賣出8,300冊。2010年上半，經濟學人平均每周發行量成長至82.3萬冊，而書報攤平均每周賣出5.2萬冊，反觀同時間美國其他周刊發行量卻不斷萎縮。

2000年《新聞周刊》每周發行量已從310萬冊銳減為160萬冊。該周刊原屬華盛頓郵報旗下，但在事業虧損的情況下被迫於上周賤價出售。其他周刊也面臨出版頻率降低或不再定期出版的窘境，更加凸顯經濟學人屹立不搖的地位。

經濟學人在美國1年份訂閱價至少100美元，價格相當於其他周刊的3倍以上，反映出讀者社會地位較高的品牌定位。南加州大學行銷助理教授普爾納 （Lars Perner）也表示，經濟學人內容多在英國編輯，因此字裡行間流露的異國氛圍也令美國讀者感到別具格調。 (新聞來源：工商時報─記者陳穎芃／綜合外電報導)
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經濟數據與FED預期 歐洲三大股市均創波段新高

精實新聞 2010-08-10 07:46:16 記者 金正平 報導 

在德國貿易數據、併購傳聞與市場預期聯準會(FED)可能祭出新的經濟刺激措施等因素帶動下，歐洲三大股市9日以高盤開出後便擴大漲幅。德國DAX指數終場上漲1.47%(91.97點)，收6,351.60點，再度創下2008年9月3日以來收盤新高。英國FTSE 100指數漲1.47%(78.13點)，收5,410.52點，為5個交易日以來首度反彈，創5月13日以來收盤新高。法國CAC 40指數漲1.65%(61.32點)，收3,777.37點，續創5月3日以來收盤新高。 

德國聯邦統計局(Destatis)9日公佈初步統計數據指出，2010年6月外銷金額年增28.5%至865億歐元；經曆日、季節性因素調整後外銷金額月增3.8%。6月外銷金額創2008年10月以來新高。彭博社報導，市場一般預估外銷金額將月增1.5%。全球化工業龍頭巴斯夫(BASF SE)上漲2.26%，收45.76歐元。德國工程業巨擘西門子(Siemens AG)漲2.76%，收78.45歐元。德國晶片業龍頭英飛凌(Infineon Technologies AG)漲0.97%，收5.09歐元。

外電報導，英國公共事業International Power Plc與法國同業GDF Suez SA可能將在未來幾天宣佈合併資產計劃，這項傳聞激勵股價上揚。International Power上漲3.71%，收380便士。GDF Suez漲2.29%，收26.79歐元。  英國石油(BP Plc)9日表示，墨西哥灣MC252漏油事件的處理費用已攀升至61億美元，其中包括對企業以及個人的3.19億美元補償費在內(計算至8月7日為止)。英國石油7月15日成功將MC253油井封住，自此以後該井便不再洩漏原油至墨西哥灣內。英國石油上漲1.74%，收432.75便士。 

彭博社報導，倫敦金屬交易所(LME)3個月期銅期貨9日盤中漲逾1%，為3個交易日以來首度反彈，礦業股隨之攀升。全球礦業龍頭必和必拓(BHP Billiton)上漲0.82%，收2,038.5便士。力拓(Rio Tinto)漲0.71%，收3,455.5便士。
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預計美國股市9日高開

鉅亨網新聞中心　(來源：世華財訊)　2010-08-09 20:49:19

美國股指期貨預示美股9日高開，惠普董事長兼CEO馬克-赫德6日宣布辭職，美聯儲10日將召開為期1天的貨幣政策會議。  

綜合媒體8月9日報導，美國股指期貨溫和上揚，擺脫了前一交易日的部分跌幅，預示美國股市周一(8月9日)高開；在惠普(Hewlett-Packard)董事長兼首席執行官馬克-赫德(Mark Hurd)於上周五(8月6日)宣布辭職之后，該公司成為市場關注焦點。  道瓊斯工業期指漲29點至10,642點，標準普爾500期指漲3.70點至1,123.20點，納斯達克100期指漲5.75點至1,908.20點。  周一(8月9日)沒有重要的經濟數據即將公布，美聯儲將於周二(8月10日)召開為期1天的貨幣政策會議，投資者等待此次會議的結果。  

德意志銀行(Deutsche Bank)分析師表示，一方面，美聯儲必須承認經濟復甦并非他們設想的那樣強勁并執行新的量化寬松，另一方面，沒有新的舉措可能令渴望流動性的市場感到失望，美聯儲必須維持好兩者之間的平衡。這是非常微妙的平衡行為，并且會議的結果至關重要。  惠普董事長兼首席執行官馬克-赫德上周五(8月6日)宣布辭職，前惠普承包商朱迪-費舍爾(Jodie Fisher)之前曾指控赫德對其進行性騷擾，從而引發惠普董事會對赫德進行調查。費舍爾的律師在周日(8月8日)公布了一份聲明，稱費舍爾已同赫德達成私下和解，將不會提起訴訟，費舍爾還表示，并未與赫德發生性關系。在紐約市場，惠普的股價盤前上揚3.8%，而該公司的法蘭克福股價下挫5.2%。  

美國泰森食品有限公司(Tyson Foods Inc.)計劃於美股開盤前公布季度業績。  歐洲股市普遍上揚，其中歐洲斯托克600指數漲1.2%。  英國石油公司(BP PLC)的倫敦股價上漲2.5%，此前BP宣布已完成墨西哥灣Macondo油井的靜態封堵與水泥灌注措施，自7月中旬以來沒有新的泄漏原油流入墨西哥灣海域，此次事故的應對成本則升至61億美元。  

制藥商阿斯利康(AstraZeneca Plc)宣布，將支付1.98億美元來解決旗下藥物思瑞康(Seroquel)的美國法律訴訟；思瑞康用於治療精神分裂癥與躁郁癥。  (王洋 編譯)
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台灣資本市場開放世界排名26

〔中央社〕南韓具有中央銀行功能的「韓國銀行」今天透露，南韓資本市場開放程度在世界上排名第12，領先排名第23的日本、第26的台灣和第32的中國。

南韓「聯合新聞通訊社」指出，韓國銀行今天發表的一項資料顯示，去年梅肯研究院所做的「資本獲得指數」（CAI：Capital Access Index）以10分為滿分計算時，南韓為7.39分，在122個調查對象國中，排名第12 。

加拿大的CAI為最高，達8.25分，其後依次為：香港（7.99）、英國（7.95）、新加坡（7.92）、美國（7.88）等國家和地區。

就亞洲地區而言，除了香港和新加坡以外，南韓的CAI高於日本（6.72，第23）、台灣（6.54，第26）、中國（6.00，第32）等國家。

法國（6.99）、德國（6.84）、義大利（5.96）等部分歐洲國家，也低於南韓。

韓國銀行人士分析，南韓的資本市場開放時間稍早，有鑑於南韓是對外依賴型經濟體制，加入開放資本市場的行列是正確選擇。但與南韓經濟規模相比，資本市場的開放程度較高，因此有必要制定避免引起副作用的方案。

CAI是體現各國資本市場開放程度的指數，由美國智庫梅肯研究院（Milken Institute）每年進行相關統計。研究院在宏觀經濟、金融相關法律與制度、資本市場條件等7方面進行調查。
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