Fed
Official Warns Against Raising US Interest Rates Too Soon
VOA News
Last updated on: October 12, 2015 8:16 PM (source)
Fed Official Warns
Against Raising US Interest Rates Too Soon
美國聯準會官員不樂見近期內
升息
Mil Arcega
October 12, 2015 8:16 PM
Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard warned against raising key U.S.
interest rates too soon, saying despite the improving economic outlook —
global weakness poses a downside risk to already low inflation in
the United States.
聯準會理事布蘭納德(Lael
Brainard)表示，雖然景
氣(economic outlook)有好轉跡象，但仍不樂見(warn against .
. .)美國主要利
率(interest rate)在近期內升息，因為疲軟的全球經濟仍會對已呈現低度通膨(inflation)的
美國經濟造成下
滑風險(pose a
risk to . . .)。(編按：聯準會全名為「聯邦準備理事會」“Federal Reserve System”)
While the U.S. economy has proved “reassuringly resilient,"
Brainard says the economic momentum may
not be strong enough to overcome deflationary risks from abroad.
布蘭納德表示，雖然美國經濟目前是「強韌而令人安心」
(reassuringly resilient)，但經濟動能(momentum)強
度或許還不足以應付由外國因素所導致的通貨緊縮(deflationary)風
險。
Concerns about slowing growth in China, the world’s second largest
economy, has roiled financial markets in the past two months, causing
the central bank to delay raising its benchmark
interest rates which have been at record lows since 2008.
因世界第二大經濟體中國成長速度趨緩而形成的憂慮(concerns about.
. .)在過去兩個月已造成全球金融市場動盪(roil)，這也使
美中央銀行決定暫緩提高自2008年來處最低紀錄(at record
lows)的基
準利率(benchmark interest rates)。
The Fed has not ruled out a modest rate hike before the end of the
year, but Brainard says sluggish wage
growth in the U.S. combined with increased market volatility could make
the U.S. more vulnerable
to external risks. U.S. monetary policy is based on the Fed’s dual mandate of
full employment and moderate inflation.
雖然聯準會仍未排除於年底前適度提高利率，但布蘭納德表示，遲緩的(sluggish)薪
資成長與市場動盪使得美國仍易
受外在風險影響
(vulnerable to . . .)。美國的貨幣政策(monetary
policy)是依聯準會充分就業與溫和的通貨膨漲兩項使命(mandate)而
定。
While U.S. unemployment, now at 5.1 percent is close to full
employment, inflation remains well below the Fed target rate of 2
percent. Despite healthy consumer demand in the U.S., the strong dollar
continues to weigh on U.S. exports, further widening trade deficits and
according to Brainard, exacerbating
the downside risk from slower global growth.
儘管美國失業率目前為5.1%，已靠近充分就業水準，但通膨
仍低於聯準會的2%目標。根據布蘭納德的說法，雖然美國消費需求健全，但強勢的美元仍是出口重壓，更進一步造成貿易赤字(deficit)擴
大，加劇
(exacerbate)了由放慢的全球成長而形成的經濟下滑風險。
Brainard, a voting member of the Federal Open market Committee — the
Fed's policy-making body — made the comments at the annual meeting of
the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) in Washington,
DC.
布蘭納德是聯準會的決策機構「美國聯邦公開市場委員會」
(Federal Open market
Committee)當中具投票權的委員。她在華盛頓特區舉行的美國商業與經濟協會(NABE)年度大會中做了上述表示。
Language Notes
outlook
(n) 展望
inflation
(n) 通貨膨脹
resilient
(a) 有彈力的；迅速恢復精力的
momentum
[moˋmɛntəm] (n) 動力
deflationary
(a) 通貨緊縮的 *deflation (n) 是 inflation 的反義字
benchmark
(n) 水準點；基準
vulnerable
(a) 易受傷的；有弱點的
mandate
(n) 受委託的工作；命令，指令
deficit
[ˋdɛfɪsɪt] (n) 赤字
exacerbate
(v) 使惡化；加劇
Check your vocabulary!
Fill
in the blanks with a word or phrase from the list above. Make necessary
changes. After you finish, select the text above to reveal the hidden
answers.
1. The truck gained momentum as it
rolled down the steep road.
2. The economic outlook is bright.
3. The company proved remarkably resilient
during the recession.
4. Children are most vulnerable to
abuse within their own home.
5. The recession has exacerbated
this problem.
編譯：簡嘉呈
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