TEXT THREE

　　Controled bleeding or cauterisation? That was the unappealing choice facing UBS, a Swiss bank which has been badly hurt by the carnage in America’s mortgage market. The bank opted for the latter. First it opened the wound, by announcing a hefty $10 billion write-down on its exposure to subprime-infected debt. UBS now expects a loss for the fourth quarter, which ends this month. Then came the hot iron: news of a series of measures to shore up the bank’s capital base, among them investments from sovereign-wealth funds in Singapore and the Middle East.

　　Bad news had been expected. UBS’s third-quarter write-down of over SFr4 billionin October looked overly optimistic compared with more aggressive markdowns at other banks such as Citigroup and Merrill Lynch. Steep falls in the market value of subprime debt since the end of the third quarter made it certain that UBS would take more pain, given its sizeable exposure to toxic collateralised-debt obligations (CDOs). Analysts at Citigroup were predicting in November that write-downs of up to SFr14 billion were possible.

　　Why then did this new batch of red ink still come as a shock? The answer lies not in the scale of the overall loss, more in UBS’s decision to take the hit in one go. The bank’s mark-to-model approach to valuing its subprime-related holdings had been based on payments data from the underlying mortgage loans. Although these data show a worsening in credit quality, the deterioration is slower than mark-to-market valuations, which have the effect of instantly crystallising all expected future losses.

　　Thanks to this gradualist approach, UBS had been expected to take write-downs in managed increments of SFr2 billion-3 billion over a period of several quarters. It now appears that the bank has incorporated market values into its model, sending its fourth-quarter write-downs into orbit. The change of approach may be on the advice of auditors and regulators but it is more likely to reflect a desire by UBS’s bosses to avoid months of speculation about the bank’s exposure, something that Marcel Rohner, the chief executive, described as "distracting".

　　In a particular indignity for a bank long associated with conservatism, concerns about the level of UBS’s capital ratio had even started to surface. Hence the moves to strengthen its tier-one capital, an important measure of bank solidity, by SFr19.4 billion, a great deal more than the write-down. The majority of that money will come from sovereign-wealth funds, the white knights of choice for today’s bank in distress. Singapore’s GIC, which manages the city-state’s foreign reserves, has pledged to buy SFr11 billion-worth of convertible bonds in UBS; an unnamed Middle Eastern investor will put in a further SFr2 billion. UBS will also raise money by selling treasury shares, and save cash by issuing its 2007 dividend in the form of shares. Its capital ratio is expected to end up above 12% in the fourth quarter, a strong position.The majority of that money will come from sovereign-wealth funds, the white knights of choice for today’s bank in distress.

　　Hopeful talk of lines being drawn under the subprime crisis has been a feature of banks’ quarterly reporting since September. Marrying bigger-than-expected write-downs with bigger-than-expected boosts to capital looks like the right treatment in this environment. But UBS still cannot be sure that its problems are over. Further deterioration in its subprime asset values is possible; the broader economic impact of the credit crunch is unclear; and the damage to the bank’s reputation cannot yet be quantified. The patient still needs watching.

　1. The author uses the metaphor "hot iron" to imply that_____.

　　[A] those measures will do more harm to UBS.

　　[B] those measures will cauterize UBS.

　　[C] those measures will forcefully stop UBS from furthur loss.

　　[D] those measures will control bleeding of UBS.

　　2. Compared with the mark-to-market valuations, the mark-to-model approach could _____.

　　[A] slow down the worsening in credit qualtiy.

　　[B] instantly crystallise all expected future loss.

　　[C] worsen the credit quality.

　　[D] accelerate the deterioration in credit quality.

　　3. The reason that Marcel Rohner thought the chang of approach was "distracting" is _____.

　　[A] this change was unexpected to take place in such a situation.

　　[B] this change was result of the advice of auditors and regulators.

　　[C] this change was unfavorite to UBS.

　　[D] this change was taken to make people dispel their guess.

　　4. The phrase "the white knights"(Line 5, Paragraph 5) most probably means____.

　　[A] rich people.

　　[B] saviors.

　　[C] generous people.

　　[D] brave people.

　　5. The author’s attitude towards UBS’s future is______.

　　[A] optimistic

　　[B] pessimistic

　　[C] uncertain

　　[D] none of the above

　篇章分析：

　　本篇文章介紹了UBS銀行目前面臨的困境以及其解決困境的一系列措施。第一段講述UBS銀行面對(duì)困境時(shí)作了強(qiáng)行止血的選擇；第二段講述UBS目前面臨的不好的因素；第三段第四段分析了其估值的方式；第五段講述UBS解決資金困難的一系列措施；第六段分析UBS面臨的一些問題。

　　詞匯注釋：

　　Carnage n. 大屠殺, 殘殺

　　hefty n. 異常大的或相當(dāng)多的

　　write-down  n.[會(huì)計(jì)]帳面價(jià)值的故意降低

　　shore up  v.支持

　　markdowns n. 削價(jià)

　　increment n.增加, 增量

　　distract v.轉(zhuǎn)移

　　indignity n.輕蔑, 侮辱, 侮辱的行為

　　solidity n.可靠性

　　pledge vt.保證, 使發(fā)誓, 抵押, 典當(dāng)

　　boost  n.增加；提高

　　crunch n. 危急情況，危急時(shí)刻或緊急狀態(tài)

　　難句突破：

　　Then came the hot iron: news of a series of measures to shore up the bank’s capital base, among them investments from sovereign-wealth funds in Singapore and the Middle East.

　　[主體句式] Then came the hot iron.

　　[結(jié)構(gòu)分析] 這是一個(gè)有復(fù)雜同位語的一個(gè)簡單句。news of ...是前面the hot iron的同位語，to shore up the bank’s capital base是不定式短語作定語修飾前面的measures, 而后面among them ...也是用來修飾measures，具體介紹其中的一些措施。

　　[句子譯文]緊接著就來了hot iron ：報(bào)道有一系列的措施來支持銀行的資本基礎(chǔ)，其中就有新加坡和中東的君主財(cái)富基金。

　　The change of approach may be on the advice of auditors and regulators but it is more likely to reflect a desire by UBS’s bosses to avoid months of speculation about the bank’s exposure, something that Marcel Rohner, the chief executive, described as "distracting".

　　[主體句式] The change of approach may be... but ...

　　[結(jié)構(gòu)分析] 這是一個(gè)并列句，but 引導(dǎo)的分句比較復(fù)雜，to avoide ...不定式短語作前面a desire的定語，而something that...是a desire的同位語，該同位語有一個(gè)定語從句。

　　[句子譯文] 方法改變可能是審計(jì)員或調(diào)節(jié)員建議的，但更反映了UBS高層的不愿數(shù)月都預(yù)計(jì)銀行曝光的意愿，這個(gè)被首席執(zhí)行官馬賽爾Rohner形容為"發(fā)狂的"。

　　題目分析：
　　1. The author uses the metaphor "hot iron" to imply that_____.1. 作者用"烙鐵"這個(gè)比喻來暗示_____。
　　[A] those measures will do more harm to UBS.[A] 這些措施會(huì)對(duì)UBS造成更多損失。
　　[B] those measures will cauterize UBS.[B] 這些措施會(huì)灼傷UBS。
　　[C] those measures will forcefully stop UBS from furthur loss.[C]這些措施會(huì)強(qiáng)行讓UBS避免進(jìn)一步的損失。
　　[D] those measures will control bleeding of UBS.
　　[答案]C
　　[分析] 細(xì)節(jié)題。作者將一系列的措施比喻為"烙鐵"，而這些措施又是為UBS提供資金，是一些好的措施，這個(gè)比喻讓人費(fèi)解。但結(jié)合第一段的上下文就可以理解，文章第一段開頭就擺出UBS面臨的抉擇，是有控制的流血還是灼傷，UBS選擇了后者，先是將傷口裸露出來，接著就來了"烙鐵"。前后聯(lián)系可以想到，烙鐵可以灼傷傷口，但可以讓傷口馬上止血，也就是讓UBS可以避免進(jìn)一步的損失。因此，答案C比較為符合。

　　2. Compared with the mark-to-market valuations, the mark-to-model approach could _____.2.與市場估量方法相比，模式方法可以_____。
　　[A] slow down the worsening in credit qualtiy.[A] 減緩信用質(zhì)量的惡化。
　　[B] nstantly crystallise all expected future loss.[B] 迅速估計(jì)出所有未來有可能的損失。
　　[C] worsen the credit quality.[C] 惡化信用質(zhì)量。
　　[D] accelerate the deterioration in credit quality.[D] 加快信用質(zhì)量的惡化。
　　[答案]A
　　[分析] 細(xì)節(jié)題。題干是關(guān)于mark-to-model估量方法的，這在文章第三段中有提及。關(guān)鍵的一句話就是，和mark-to-market方法相比，這種惡化要慢一些，因?yàn)槭袌龇椒�可迅速估算出未來所有有可能的損失。要注意的是，which have the effect of instantly crystallising all expected future losses是修飾mark-to-market 方法的定語從句，這一點(diǎn)容易讓讀者混淆。

　　3. The reason that Marcel Rohner thought the chang of approach was "distracting" is _____.3.馬塞爾認(rèn)為這種轉(zhuǎn)變是"轉(zhuǎn)移注意力的"是因?yàn)開____。
　　[A] this change was unexpected to take place in such a situation.[A]在當(dāng)時(shí)情形下出現(xiàn)這種轉(zhuǎn)變是出人意料的。
　　[B] this change was result of the advice of auditors and regulators.[B] 這種轉(zhuǎn)變是審計(jì)員和調(diào)解員建議的。
　　[C] this change was unfavorite to UBS.[C] 這種轉(zhuǎn)變對(duì)于UBS是不利的。
　　[D] this change was taken to make people dispel their guess.[D]采取這種轉(zhuǎn)變是為了打消人們心中的猜測。
　　[答案]D
　　[分析] 推理題。題干中到的轉(zhuǎn)變是指UBS評(píng)估方法由模式方法轉(zhuǎn)變?yōu)閷⑹袌鼋Y(jié)合進(jìn)來的方法，馬塞爾認(rèn)為這種轉(zhuǎn)變是"轉(zhuǎn)移注意力的"，由上文可知這種轉(zhuǎn)變是UBS高層為了避免數(shù)月來對(duì)銀行曝光的猜測。因此，所說的"轉(zhuǎn)移注意力"是避免猜測，那么答案D比較為符合。

　　4.The phrase "the white knights"(Line 5, Paragraph 5) most probably means____.4.短語"白色騎士"（第五段第五行）比較有可能指_____。
　　[A] rich people.[A] 富有的人。
　　[B] saviors.[B] 救星。
　　[C] generous people.[C] 慷慨的人。
　　[D] brave people.[D] 勇敢的人。
　　[答案]B
　　[分析] 猜詞題。根據(jù)上下文，絕大部分的救助基金來自君主財(cái)產(chǎn)基金，這個(gè)基金對(duì)于許多身處困境的銀行來說就是白衣騎士，可以推斷"白衣騎士"可能代表救助他人的人，答案中BC都有這層意思，根據(jù)其救助對(duì)象是身處困境的銀行，更側(cè)重于危難時(shí)的救助。因此，B更為符合題意。

　　5.The author’s attitude towards UBS’s future is______.5. 作者對(duì)于UBS未來的態(tài)度是_____。
　　[A] optimistic[A] 樂觀的。
　　[B] pessimistic[B] 悲觀的。
　　[C] uncertain[C] 不確定的。
　　[D] none of the above.[D] 以上都不是。
　　[答案]C
　　[分析] 態(tài)度題。這篇文章比較客觀地描述了UBS目前的困境和其為了擺脫這個(gè)困境要解決的方法，作者的態(tài)度雖然在前面幾次都提到UBS得到了一些資助，有望轉(zhuǎn)好。但文章比較后一段提出UBS目前也面臨眾多問題，所以結(jié)局還有待觀察。文章的比較后一句明確表明了作者的不確定的態(tài)度。

　　參考譯文：

　　有控制地流血還是灼傷？這是UBS，一家因美國抵押信貸市場受到重挫的瑞士銀行所要面對(duì)的尷尬選擇。而這家銀行選擇了后者，先是在公開subprime- infected債之際宣布高達(dá)100億資產(chǎn)價(jià)值縮水，從而裸露出傷口。UBS目前預(yù)計(jì)第四季度也將虧損，本月就能見分曉。緊接著就來了hot iron：報(bào)道有一系列的措施來支持銀行的資本基礎(chǔ)，其中就有新加坡和中東的君主財(cái)富基金。

　　也應(yīng)該會(huì)有些壞消息。UBS四分之三的資產(chǎn)價(jià)值縮水超過40億瑞士法郎，這與其他銀行（如Citigroup and Merrill Lynch）更為嚴(yán)重的狀況相比而言還是較為樂觀。第三季度末subprime debt市場價(jià)值的急劇下落使得UBS將會(huì)面臨更多的苦痛，尤其是它相當(dāng)大的一部分資產(chǎn)都受到抵押的影響。Citigroup分析師在11月預(yù)言可能會(huì)有140億瑞士法郎的損失。

　　那么為什么這次新的一組赤字還是讓人們大吃一驚呢？答案并不是因?yàn)榭偺潛p的規(guī)模，而是UBS決定一次性地承擔(dān)損失。銀行估量其與subprime相關(guān)的股票所用的mark-to-model方法是基于第一擔(dān)保抵押貸款的支付數(shù)據(jù)上的。盡管這些數(shù)據(jù)顯示信用有所降低，但比起用mark-to-market的估量方式其惡化速度要慢一些，具有迅速明確所有未來損失的作用。

　　正是由于采取了這個(gè)緩和的方式，UBS可望在幾個(gè)季度內(nèi)資產(chǎn)賬面價(jià)值增長控制在20到30億瑞士法郎。目前顯示出該銀行已經(jīng)將市場價(jià)值納入其模式中，從而將第四季度的資產(chǎn)賬面價(jià)值控制在一定范圍內(nèi)。方法改變可能是審計(jì)員或調(diào)節(jié)員建議的，但更反映了UBS高層要避免數(shù)月來對(duì)銀行曝光的猜測，這個(gè)被首席執(zhí)行官馬賽爾Rohner形容為"轉(zhuǎn)移注意力的"。

　　一個(gè)長期以保守見稱的銀行如今卻受到這種侮辱，對(duì)于UBS的資金率的擔(dān)心也就逐漸出現(xiàn)了。因此就采取措施加強(qiáng)了第一層資金約194億瑞士法郎，該數(shù)額比資產(chǎn)賬面損失要多許多，是增加銀行信用的重要方法。資金大部分來源于君主資產(chǎn)基金，這是當(dāng)今處于困境的銀行的白衣騎士。新加坡GIC掌握著這個(gè)城市國家的外匯儲(chǔ)備，它承諾要購買UBS110億瑞士法郎的可轉(zhuǎn)債。一個(gè)匿名的中東投資者又投入了20億瑞士法郎。UBS也會(huì)售賣債券、以股票的形式發(fā)行2007的紅利來募集現(xiàn)金。其資本率有望在第四季度達(dá)到12%多，這樣處境就很不錯(cuò)了。

　　從九月份以來，銀行每季度的報(bào)告會(huì)的一大特色就是討論將額度控制在subprime風(fēng)險(xiǎn)之下。把比預(yù)期大的資產(chǎn)賬面降低程度和比預(yù)期大的資本增加相結(jié)合好像是這種氛圍下的一個(gè)正確處理方案。但是UBS還是不能確保問題都已解決。有可能出現(xiàn)subprime資產(chǎn)價(jià)值的繼續(xù)惡化，而且信用創(chuàng)傷引起的更廣闊范圍內(nèi)的經(jīng)濟(jì)沖擊也不很明確，還有對(duì)公司名譽(yù)的損害程度也還沒有確定。病情還有待觀察。

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