1·When the Commerce Department reported last week that the trade deficit in June approached $50 billion, it set off a new round of economic doomsaying.
上周美国商务部报告称,6月份的贸易逆差接近500亿美元,这引发了新一轮的经济末日预言。
2·Last week the US Commerce Department confirmed the duties and in the case of one Chinese company raised them to 44 per cent, more than four times higher than its preliminary levy.
上周,美国商务部批准了征收这些反补贴税,对于其中一家中国公司,反补贴税甚至提高到了44%,比初步征收额高出4倍以上。
3·Wages and salaries rose by 3%, while corporate profits fell by 9%, from the third quarter of 2007 through the third quarter of 2008, according to Commerce Department data.
美国商务部的数据表明,从2007年第三季度到2008年第三季度,美国工资和薪金上升了3%,而企业的利润下跌了9%。
4·Meanwhile, the U.S. Commerce Department reported that new home construction plummeted to an all-time low, down 17 percent in January from the previous month.
与此同时,美国商务部报告,新房建造率下降到最低点。一月份新房建造比前一个月下降了17%。
5·Despite an uptick in consumer spending, the Commerce Department says U.S. growth has been less robust than expected, expanding at an annual rate of just 1 percent in the second quarter.
尽管消费者支出有所回暖,但是美国商务部说,美国经济增长不如预期强劲,今年第二季度的年增长率仅为1%。