Asias dueling financial hubs invest a lot of capitalreal and emotionalin whats often cast as a zero-sum contest for the affection of foreign companies. Yet both cities have done so well wooing them of late that the major threat facing each isnt the other, but bottlenecks in the foreign infrastructure common to both. High-end housing costs are pushing past records set before the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, prompting Singapores founding father, Lee Kuan Yew, to lament, We must check this hike in rents or we will lose our competitiveness.
Talent is getting tougher to find as both economies near full employment. Office rents are driving even the richest investment banks to seek cheaper alternatives to prime downtown addresses. And as both cities increase their populations by luring hundreds of thousands of additional outsiders over the coming decade, locals are getting squeezed. There may be a political cost if Singaporeans feel priced out by foreigners, warns Charles Chong, head of a parliamentary committee on national development in Singapore.
Both cities are, in a sense, victims of their success. Each ranks among the most efficient spots on the planet to register new businesses. They boast world-class banking, accounting and legal services, undergirded by respect for contracts and commercial codes not found in the rest of Asia. In a region awash in cash from record trade surpluses, Chinese expansion and a flood of new stock listings, the cities have posted incredible GDP growth numbers of late6.8 percent and 7.9 percent for Hong Kong and Singapore, respectively, last year.
Given that local fertility rates are falling, both hubs hope to continue to fuel that boom via immigration. Singapores Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan expects the city-states population to hit 6.5 million by 2027, up 2 million from todaywhich implies a yearly influx of 100,000 foreigners over the next two decades. Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang has said he envisions his citys population eventually surpassing 10 milliona 30 percent increase from todays totalthanks to an injection of new blood from all nationalities. As the hubs grow more receptive to outsiders, new factors are ensuring that immigrants arrive in large numbers. Whereas globalization was once confined to big multinationals, todays expatriates work disproportionately for smaller-and medium-size companies. Nor are they predominantly European or North America anymore; China, India and South Korea are just three of the many countries now sending professionals abroad.
46. Foreigners in Hong Kong begin to sweat because _______.
[A] the real-estate market is cooling down.
[B] they cannot afford childrens tuition fee at international schools.
[C] the city is over-populated.
[D] the hiking rents are making life tougher.
47. We learn from the second paragraph that _______.
[A] Hong Kong and Singapore consider each other as competitors.
[B] both the two cities should not import foreigners.
[C] the two cities share no common problem.
[D] Lee Kuan Yews comment shows that hes optimistic.
48. According to the text, local people in the two cities _______.
[A] do not welcome overseas talents.
[B] are facing worse living conditions.
[C] are unsatisfied with the government.
[D] are in full employment.
49. Which of the following is NOT the reason of the regions abundance of capital?
[A] efficiency of business registration
[B] Chinas development
[C] booming stock market
[D] benefit from trade
50. We can draw a conclusion from the last paragraph that _______.
[A] the conflict between population and rent in the two cities might be more serious.
[B] most of the foreigners work in big multinational companies.
[C] both cities will adopt measures to control population.
[D] the influx of foreigners can damage local economy.
英语六级考试阅读猜词技巧解读
最新英语六级考试快速阅读实战练习(2)
名师推荐:六级阅读中的典故欣赏
名师屠浩民:大学英语六级精细阅读解题基本方略
攻破大学英语六级阅读要拿捏好理想和现实层面
备考英语六级阅读必须掌握的长难句1
大学英语四六级阅读理解主旨题名师深解
大学英语六级阅读试题冲刺倒计时27天
精华推荐:大学英语六级阅读部分猜词技巧
大学英语四六级复习:两种必备的英语阅读方法
大学英语六级阅读:爱只是一根线(Love Is Just a Thread)
大学英语六级经典阅读7
大学英语六级阅读备考技巧及词汇(四)
名师指导:大学英语六级考试必读的通关宝典
大学英语六级阅读主旨题有哪些出题形式
六级阅读特殊解题技巧:扫读和跳读
高分必备:大学英语六级深度阅读准确解答四步骤
名师指导:考试中警惕你的英语阅读习惯
备考大学英语六级考试快速阅读讲义
201六级考试必看经典范文:网络犯罪
大学英语六级考试王长喜标准阅读(第5篇)
大学英语六级考试王长喜标准阅读(第6篇)
英语六级阅读备考练习 第3期
大学英语六级阅读备考技巧及词汇(三)
大学英语六级阅读理解核心备考词汇归类(D-H)
1六级考试必看经典范文:冒险活动
大学英语六级阅读题各部分时间如何安排
导致六级阅读失分的四大原因
盘点大学英语六级阅读中的英语典故
大学英语六级经典阅读5
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |