In short, economics is the study of how people and groups of people use their resources.

　　簡(jiǎn)單地講，經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)這門學(xué)科研究的是人們以及不同的群體如何利用他們手上的資源。

　　Money certainly is one of those resources, but other things can play a role in economics as well.

　　金錢顯然就是其中一種資源，但很多其他東西也在經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)中占有一席之地。

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　　In an attempt to clarify all this, let's take a look at the basics of economics and why you might consider studying this complex field.

　　為了講清楚這些，我們來看看經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)里的一些基礎(chǔ)知識(shí)點(diǎn)吧，然后說說你為什么應(yīng)該考慮研究這個(gè)復(fù)雜的領(lǐng)域。

　　The Field of Economics

　　經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)的研究范圍

　　Economics is divided into two general categories: microeconomics and macroeconomics. One looks at the individual markets while the other looks at an entire economy.

　　經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)被分為兩個(gè)主要的領(lǐng)域：微觀經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)和宏觀經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)。前者研究的是個(gè)人面對(duì)的市場(chǎng)，后者研究的是整體經(jīng)濟(jì)環(huán)境。

　　From there, we can narrow economics into a number of subfields of study.

　　由此，我們可以把經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)進(jìn)一步細(xì)化為數(shù)個(gè)子領(lǐng)域來研究。

　　These include econometrics, economic development, agricultural economics, urban economics, and much more.

　　他們包括計(jì)量經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)、經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)、農(nóng)業(yè)經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)、城市經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)以及很多其他領(lǐng)域。

　　If you have an interest in how the world works and how financial markets or industry outlooks affect the economy, you might consider studying economics.

　　如果你想知道世界是如何運(yùn)作的，想知道金融市場(chǎng)和各行各業(yè)的大環(huán)境如何影響經(jīng)濟(jì)，你可以考慮學(xué)一學(xué)經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)。

　　It's a fascinating field and has career potential in a number of disciplines, from finance to sales to the government.

　　這是一個(gè)引人入勝的領(lǐng)域，而且能提供很多領(lǐng)域的就業(yè)機(jī)會(huì)，包括金融、銷售、政府部門等。

　　Two Essential Concepts of Economics

　　經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)的兩個(gè)核 心概念

　　Much of what we study in economics has to do with money and the markets.

　　我們?cè)诮?jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)中學(xué)的大部分東西都和錢與市場(chǎng)有關(guān)。

　　What are people willing to pay for something?

　　人們?cè)敢鉃橐粋�(gè)東西付多大的代價(jià)?

　　Is one industry doing better than another?

　　這個(gè)行業(yè)的表現(xiàn)是不是比那個(gè)更好?

　　What is the economic future of the country or world?

　　這個(gè)國(guó)家或者全世界的經(jīng)濟(jì)前景如何?

　　These are important questions e conomists examine and it comes with a few basic terms.

　　這都是經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家研究的重要問題，而他們誕生出了幾個(gè)基本的概念。

　　Supply and Demand is one of the first things we learn in economics.

　　供給與需求就是我們?cè)诮?jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)中最早學(xué)到的概念之一。

　　Supply speaks to the quantity of something that's available for sale while demand refers to the willingness to purchase it.

　　供給指的是一種東西可供售賣的數(shù)量，而需求指的是人們購(gòu)買這個(gè)東西的意愿。

　　If the supply is higher than the demand, the market is thrown off balance and costs typically decrease.

　　如果供給高于需求，市場(chǎng)就脫離了平衡狀態(tài)，成本通常會(huì)下降。

　　The opposite is true if demand is greater than the supply available because that commodity is more desirable and harder to obtain.

　　而如果需求高于供給，比如因?yàn)槟硺赢a(chǎn)品有更多人想要，或者某樣產(chǎn)品變得更難獲得，那么就會(huì)發(fā)生相反的情況。

　　Elasticity is another key concept in economics.

　　價(jià)格彈性是經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)中的另一個(gè)關(guān)鍵概念。

　　Essentially, here we're talking about how much the price of something can fluctuate before it has a negative impact on sales.

　　從根本上講，我們?cè)谶@要說的是在一個(gè)東西的價(jià)格變化對(duì)其銷量造成負(fù)面影響之前，它的價(jià)格能變動(dòng)多少。

　　Elasticity ties into demand and some products and services are more elastic than others.

　　價(jià)格彈性與需求是密不可分的，有些產(chǎn)品或服務(wù)比其他的東西擁有更高的彈性。

　　Understanding the Financial Markets

　　理解金融市場(chǎng)

　　As you might expect, many of the factors that play into economics have to do with the financial markets.

　　正如你可能想的一樣，經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)中的很多要素都與金融市場(chǎng)有關(guān)。

　　This is also a complicated matter with many subtopics that you can dive into.

　　這也是個(gè)有很多子話題可供研究的復(fù)雜領(lǐng)域。

　　First and foremost, it's important to understand how prices are set in a market economy. At the heart of this is information and what is known as a contingent contract.

　　首先，有個(gè)很重要的點(diǎn)需要了解，那就是市場(chǎng)經(jīng)濟(jì)中的價(jià)格是如何確定的。這其中最核 心的兩個(gè)要素就是信息以及所謂的或有合約。

　　Essentially, this type of arrangement places stipulations on the price paid based on external factors: if X happens, then I'll pay this much.

　　從根源上講，是這樣的體系為價(jià)格的確定給出了規(guī)則，讓我們得以根據(jù)外部因素來確定價(jià)格：如果某件特定的事發(fā)生，那我就會(huì)付這么多。

　　One question that many investors have is "What happens to my money when stock prices go down?"

　　很多投資者會(huì)問的一個(gè)問題是“當(dāng)股價(jià)下跌的時(shí)候，我的錢去哪里了?”

　　The answer is not easy, and before you dive into the stock market, it's essential that you know how it works.

　　這個(gè)問題回答起來并不容易，而在你投身股市之前，有必要先弄明白它是如何運(yùn)作的。

　　To further complicate things, economic situations like a recession can throw many things off.

　　有些時(shí)候事情會(huì)變得更加復(fù)雜，比如衰退一類的經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況，它會(huì)讓很多東西都亂套。

　　For instance, just because an economy goes into recession, doesn't mean that prices will fall.

　　比如，當(dāng)經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退的時(shí)候，價(jià)格并不一定會(huì)下降。

　　In fact, it's the opposite for things like housing. Quite often, prices go up because supply is down and demand is up. This rise in prices is known as inflation.

　　實(shí)際上，對(duì)于房市來說恰好相反。通常由于供給下降而需求升高，價(jià)格會(huì)上漲。這種上漲就是我們所知的通貨膨脹。

　　Interest Rates and Exchange Rates

　　利率與匯率

　　Interest rates and exchange rates also cause fluctuations in the markets.

　　利率與匯率也會(huì)給市場(chǎng)帶來波動(dòng)。

　　You will often hear e conomists express concern over these. When interest rates go down, people tend to buy and borrow more. Yet, this can cause interest rates to rise in the end.

　　你會(huì)經(jīng)常聽到經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家們對(duì)此發(fā)表關(guān)切。當(dāng)利率降低的時(shí)候，人們傾向于買更多的東西、借更多的錢。而這最終會(huì)導(dǎo)致利率升高。

　　Exchange rates refer to how the currency of one country compares to those of another. These are key components in the global economy.

　　匯率指的是一個(gè)國(guó)家的貨幣相較于其他國(guó)家的貨幣值多少錢。這是國(guó)際經(jīng)濟(jì)中的一個(gè)關(guān)鍵要素。

　　Other terms you'll hear in reference to the markets are opportunity costs, cost measures, and monopolies. Each is a key element in understanding the overall economic forecast.

　　你會(huì)聽到的其他一些關(guān)于市場(chǎng)的概念包括機(jī)會(huì)成本、成本計(jì)量、壟斷，每一個(gè)對(duì)于你理解宏觀經(jīng)濟(jì)預(yù)測(cè)來說都是很關(guān)鍵的元素。

　　And we will talk about them indetail in the future.

　　這些我們以后再詳細(xì)講。

　　口譯： 翻譯資格考試二級(jí)口譯模擬題

　　筆譯： 翻譯資格考試二級(jí)筆譯模擬題

　　資料來源考試網(wǎng)校老師主講教材精講班課程，完整講義下載進(jìn)入個(gè)人中心>>