Slow English

SLOW ENGLISH
Edited by Nguyen Hong Anh, M.A. in TESOL

I hope that this kind of listening will help you improve your English, especially your pronunciation.

I. Subprime loans (1) are high-interest loans made to borrowers with bad credit ratings (2). Now that the US housing market bubble(3) has burst(4), more of these borrowers are defaulting(5) on their mortgages(6), and this is causing big problems for subprime lenders and perhaps, eventually, for the US economy. New Century Financial Corporation, the largest independent subprime lender in the US, is nearly bankrupt(7); their stock price has gone down by almost 99%, their lenders have cut off their money, and the New York Stock Exchange wants to take them off of the exchange. Nearly 20 subprime lenders have gone out of business(8) recently, and General Motors has had to invest a billion additional dollars in GMAC, its former financial division(9), because of their reliance(10) on subprime loans.

Vocabulary:

1. khỏan vay 2. tỉ lệ tín dụng 3. sự sôi động của thị trường nhà ở
4. bùng phát 5. trả không đúng hạn 6. tài sản thế chấp
7. phá sản 8. ngừng việc kinh doan 9. bộ phận tài chính trước đây
10. sự tín nhiệm

II. The United States and North Korea have resolved their dispute1 over $25 million of North Korean money currently frozen2 by the Chinese government in Banco Delta Asia, a small bank in Macau. Macau is a special administrative region3 of China known for its growing casino gambling business. The Chinese government had frozen the assets4 because of US concerns that the money was connected to counterfeiting5, drugs, and nuclear weapons in North Korea, and this led North Korea to boycott6 talks on the disarmament7 of their nuclear program. Now, the money will be returned to North Korea to clear the way for their nuclear disarmament. They have assured the US that the money will be used for humanitarian purposes.

Vocabulary

1. Giải quyết vụ tranh cãi 2. bị đóng băng 3. đơn vị hành chánh
4. bất động sản 5. giả mạo 6. tẩy chay
7. giải trừ

III. European Union consumer affairs commissioner1 Meglena Kuneva recently criticized Apple Incorporated's iTunes service. She told the German weekly magazine Focus "Do you think it's fine that a CD plays in all CD players but that a song purchased from iTunes only plays in an iPod? I don't." Apple chief executive2 Steve Jobs recently published a letter telling European consumers that he doesn't like DRM (Digital Rights Management, the technology that restricts your ability to use downloaded material) and that consumers should send their complaints to big record labels, who demand copy protection on their products. Some labels offer their music on both iTunes and DRM-free downloading services, causing several people to question Jobs' sincerity3 when he says that the record companies insist on DRM.

Vocabulary

1. Ủy viên phụ trách về người tiêu dung 2. Giám đốc điều hành 3. sự thành thật

IV. Oilfield services company Halliburton has announced that they are moving their corporate headquarters1 from Houston, Texas, to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, because they see greater opportunities for business growth in the Middle East. Halliburton chief executive David Lesar will live and work there, saying that "Dubai is a great business center." Halliburton may also move their stock listing from the New York Stock Exchange to a Middle Eastern one. Halliburton and their KBR subsidiary2 have drawn criticism for the amount of profit they've made from the United States' current and first wars with Iraq, and many have questioned whether their former leader Dick Cheney's current position as vice president of the United States has given them an unfair advantage.

Vocabulary

1. Trụ sở chính 2. phụ

V. Ford Motor Company is selling 85% of their Aston Martin luxury performance car division for $925 million to a team that is led by former Formula 1 team racing boss David Richards and includes investors from Kuwait, Egypt, and Texas. Aston Martins have been driven by the title character in the James Bond movies from 1964's "Goldfinger" to last year's "Casino Royale." British auto industry fans are happy to see the brand back in their country. Some industry analysts are speculating that Ford may still sell off their other British luxury brand, Jaguar. Like Aston Martin, Jaguar has been one of the few Ford divisions to make money lately.