VOA标准英语10月-Global Markets Mixed Ahead of New Bailout Vote

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Senator John Kerry speaks to reporters on the proposed economic bailout package, 30 Sep 2008

Democratic Senator John Kerry says there must be no repeat of Monday's fiasco.

"We must get this financial package done, and I believe we will get it done," he said.

Now the Senate will have its say. Senate negotiators took the framework of the House bill and added several provisions designed to broaden the measure's appeal, including tax breaks for some businesses and raising the limit of federally-insured bank accounts from $100,000 to $250,000 per person.

"We have come together here on a bipartisan basis, and structured a way forward on an important rescue package for our country," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said.

Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama - both senators - are expected to return to Washington from the campaign trail to vote on the measure, as is Mr. Obama's running mate, Senator Joe Biden.
　

Traders work on floor of the New York Stock Exchange, 30 Sep 2008

For now, Wall Street seems to be taking a wait-and-see approach after several days of wild swings both negative and positive. U.S. stocks opened moderately lower Wednesday. Asian and European shares were mostly higher.

The financial crisis began with a rash of US home foreclosures after a prolonged period of loose credit that saw millions of Americans acquire home mortgages they could not afford. The fallout prompted the failure of many of America's best-known financial institutions, and reluctance² by lenders to extend credit. It has also led some Americans to question the safety of bank accounts, despite the fact that nearly all are federally guaranteed.

Raising federal guarantee limits for bank accounts will ease concerns, according to Andrew Gray, a spokesman for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

"This would provide the dual³ benefits of providing additional liquidity⁴ for banks for lending, as well as provide some additional reassurance⁵ for depositors above the current [insurance] limits," Gray said.

But not all economists⁷ support the bailout package, which calls for the federal government to relieve struggling financial institutions of up to $700 billion in bad debt.

"This quasi-monetary⁸ policy involves the Treasury⁹ purchasing poor paper, securities that have turned sour, securities that no one else wants. That is not the way normal monetary policy works," noted¹⁰ University of Chicago economist⁶ Lawrence Officer. "Normal monetary policy works by having the central bank buy up good securities, not crummy paper."

Even if the bailout package is ultimately approved and implemented¹¹, most economists believe the United States will endure a prolonged period of slow growth, if not a painful recession.

In the face of a grim outlook, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur is urging stoicism.

"We have a strong economic system, and frankly¹² for Wall Street I would say, 'calm down, do not panic, do not be led to anxious behavior,'" she said.

Should the Senate pass the rescue package, the measure would be taken up by the House as early as Thursday.