BEC商務英語初級閱讀技巧介紹
1. 上下文句子間內容的內在聯(lián)系:
例:So far, the national trends in costs for wages, salaries, and benefits have glossed over these concerns. The growth in labor costs continued to slow in the second quarter – a pattern that held true in all major regions. However, the slowdown in labor costs is due to solely to sharp cutbacks in what companies, mainly large corporations, are paying for benefits, which make up about a fourth of total compensation costs nationally. Because of slower growth in costs of health care, workers’ compensation, and state unemployment insurance, benefits grew only 2.6% during the past year, the lowest pace in record.
在這一段落中,作者用了五個cost。雖然每一句中的cost未必是前一句中同一詞的簡單重復,但都與labor cost 相吻合,使整個段落所表達的內容連貫地表述出來。第*句和第二句提出勞工費用問題,第三句提出原因,最后一句闡述了勞工費用增加所生產的后果,意思層層加深,彼此相銜接。
2. 替代
例:But since few have marked down their own prices in line with the metal’s fall, they will be able to recoup much of the differences. Not so the producers, whose income is directly related to the fluctuating daily price on the London Metal Exchange.
但由于迄今沒有幾家公司按照金屬價格的下跌程度來降低其價格,他們將能夠獲得差價的大部分收益。但是生產商家卻不是這樣,他們的收入與倫敦金屬交易所的每月浮動價格直接相關。
這里so代替了to recoup much of the difference.
3. 省略
例:The Japanese have their electronics, the Germans their engineering. But when it comes to command of global markets, the U.S. owns the service sector.
日本人占有電器市場,德國人占有工程市場。但談及全球市場的占有量時,美國擁有服務市場。
第*句the Germans后面省略了have一詞。
例:Meanwhile, pressure has been growing from the car companies. GM ships about 60% of its cars and trucks with Ryder, while Chrysler ships some 40%.
與此同時,汽車公司方面的壓力在不斷增大。通用公司60%的轎車和卡車由萊德公司拖運,而克萊斯勒公司也需該公司拖運其40%的車輛。
最后一句結尾some 40% 后面省略了of its cars and trucks.
4. 連接詞
介詞和副詞常在句子和段落間起銜接作用,把句子和段落間的意思連貫地表述出來。西方經貿報刊中用于承上啟下的連接詞可表示對比,如:but, however, whereas等;表示原因,如:since, because, due to等;表示結果,如:with;表示目的,如:so that, in order to等;表示時間發(fā)展的先后順序,如:first, second, next, then等,以及表示情況的內在聯(lián)系,如:and, as well as, in the case等。
例:Still, August’s strong output gains don’t look sustainable.
First of all, current modest demand growth will not support any more increase that large. Second, now that manufacturers have worked to get their inventories lower, they will be cautious about adding goods in coming months.
而8月份強勁的生產量增長趨勢不會持續(xù)下去。
首先,目前較小的需求增長不需要如此大的生產增長額。此外,既然生產企業(yè)已經設法去壓低其庫存量,所以他們對今后幾個月增加生產一事持謹慎態(tài)度。