淘金高阶英语六级巅峰阅读 篇章阅读36：商业经济

　　The American economic system is organized around a basically privateenterprise, market-oriented economy in which consumers largely determine what shall be produced by spending their money in the marketplace for those goods and services that they want most. Private businessmen, striving to make profits, produce these goods and services in competition with other businessmen; and the profit motive, operating under competitive pressures, largely determines how these goods and services are produced. Thus, in the American economic system it is the demand of individual consumers, coupled with the desire of businessmen to maximize profits and the desire of individuals to maximize their incomes, that together determine what shall be produced and how resources are used to produce it.

　　An important factor in a market-oriented economy is the mechanism by which consumer demands can he expressed and responded to by producers. In the American economy, this mechanism is provided by a price system, a process in which prices rise and fall in response to relative demands of consumers and supplies offered by seller-producers. If the product is in short supply relative to the demand, the price will be bid up anal some consumers will be eliminated from the market, If, on the other hand, producing more of a commodity results in reducing its cost. this will tend to increase the supply offered by sellerproducers, which in tum will lower the price and permit more consumers to buy the product. Thus, price is the regulating mechanism in the American economic system.

　　The important factor in a private-enterprise economy is that individuals are allowed to own productive resources , and they are permitted to hire labor, gain control over natural resources, and produce goods and services for sale at a profit. In the American economy,the concept of private property embraces not only the ownership of productive resources but also certain rights, including the right to determine the price of a product or to make a free contract with another private individual.

　　参考译文

　　美国经济体制基本上是围绕着私营企业、市场经济建立起不的。在这种经济体制下，消费者把钱花费在他们最希望获得的产品和服务上，因而在很大程度上决定了应当生产什么。私营业主为了追求利润，同其他业主展开竞争，生产这些产品、提供这些服务。在竞争压力下进行经营，牟利动机将在很大程度上决定如何生产和提供这些产品和服务。因此，在美国的经济体系中，应当生产什么以及怎样利用资源来生产这些产品。是由个体消费者的需求加上商人追求利润最大化的欲望和个人追求收入效益最大的欲望共同决定的。

　　市场经济的一个重要要求就是能够让消费者表达需求并促使生产者对消费者需求做出反应的机制。在美国经济中，这种机制是通过价格体系来实现的。在该价格体系下，价格随消费者的需求以及供应商的供应情况上下涨跌。如果产品供不应求，价格就会上涨，一些消费者就会被排挤出市场。而另外一方面，如果大量生产某产品导致成本下降，供应商就会倾向扩大产品供应，这反过来又会降低产品价格，从而让更多的消费者购买到产品。这样，价格就成为美国经济体系中的调节杠杆。

　　私营经济的一个重要要素是个人可以拥有生产资料(私人财产)，他们可以雇用劳动力，支配自然资源，通过生产产品、提供服务来赢利。在美国经济体系中，私人财产的概念不仅包括生产资料的所有权，也包含某些权利，其中包括决定产品价格或同其他私人企业自由签订协议的权利。

　　测试题

　　1.According to the first paragraph, in America, individuals_______________.

　　A) are never satisfied with their incomes

　　B) tend to overstate their incomes

　　C) want to have their incomes increased

　　D) want to increase the purchasing power of their incomes

　　2.It is implied in the first two sentences in the second paragraph that__________.

　　A) consumers can be satisfied by mechanized production

　　B) producers are the means through which consumers express their demands

　　C) the price of products are decided by producers

　　D) prices are regulated by supply and demand

　　3.According to the passage, a private-enterprise economy is featured by______。

　　A) private property and rights concerned

　　B) manpower and natural resources control

　　C) ownership of productive re:sources

　　D) free contracts and prices

　　4.We can learn from the passage that in market-oriented economy________.

　　A) consumers are the only factor to determine what shall be produced

　　B) how goods and services are produced is mainly conducted by the profit mottve

　　C) the American economic system is exactly a market-oriented economy

　　D) businessmen can produce more goods Ln order to earn more profits

　　5.Which of the following can be the BEST title of the passage?

　　A) How American Goods Are Produced?

　　B) How American Consumers Buy Their Goods?

　　C) How American Economic System Works?

　　D) How American Businessmen Make Their Prorits7

　　答案详解

　　1.根据文章第一段，在美国，个人______________。

　　A)对其收入永远不满足 B)趋向于夸大其收入

　　C)希望增加其收入 D)希望增大其收入的购买力

　　文章首段末句提到，消费者个体的需求，加上企业主获取最大利润的欲望和个人追求收入效益最大化的欲望，共同决定 。句中individuals to maximize their incomes指的是 个人追求收入效益最大化 因此选项D为本题答案。

　　2.第二段前两句话暗示了____________。

　　A)机械化生产能移满足消费者的需求

　　B)生产者是消费者赖以表达需求的途径

　　C)产品的价格由生产者决定

　　D)价格由供求关系调控

　　第2段前两句话提到，市场经济的一个重要组成因素就是反映消赞者需求并促使生产者对消费者需求做出反应的机制。在美国经济中，这种机制是通过价格体系来实现的。在该价格体系下，价格随消费者的需求以及销售者 生产者的供应情况上下涨跌。结合这两句可知，价格是由供求关系调控的，因此选项D为本题答案。

　　3.根据文章，私营企业经济的特点是__________。

　　A)关心私有财产和权利 B)控制劳动力和自然资源

　　C)生产资料的所有权 D)自由合同和价格

　　文章末段首句讲到私营经济的一个重要组成因素是个人可以拥有私人财产，接着第2句又说私人财产的概念不仅包括生产资料的所有权，也包含某些权利。由此可知，选项A正确。

　　4.我们，文中可以得出，在市场经济中___________。

　　A)消费者是决定生产何种产品的唯一因素。

　　B)商品和服务是如何生成的主要由谋利动机引导。

　　C)美国的经济系统完全是市场导向型经济。

　　D)商人可以生产更多商品来获得更多利润。

　　首段第2句中的第2个分句提到，在竞争压力下进行经营的牟利动机，将在很大程度上决定如何生产和提供消费者最希望获得的产品和服务。也就是说，产品和服务是如何提供的主要由牟利动机决定，故选项B正确。

　　5.下列哪项作为文章标题最佳?

　　A)美国的商品是如何生产的? B)美国的消费者是怎样购买商品的?

　　C)美国的经济系统是如何运作的? D)美国的商人是怎样获得利润的?

　　文章标题应该体现文章的主旨，文章第1段就指出美国经济体制基本上是围绕着私营企业，市场经济建立起来的。第2、3段分别说明了市场经济和私营经济的一个重要组成因素，由此可以推断文章的主旨是美国的经济系统是如何运作的，故选项C正确。