英語學習筆記

How Japan Job Growth Could Lift Yen
                                                             ^{by Yuka Hayashi}

Microsoft's Videogame Efforts Take a Costly Hit
                                                                                                ^{by Nick Wingfield}

PayRolls Growth Slowed in July As Unemployment Rate Rose
                                                        ^{by Brian Blackstone}
    U.S. employemnt growth slowed and the jobless rate ticked up last month as job losses in manufacturing, construction and government offset healthy gains in many services industries, suggesting that the economy started the third quarter on a softer note after robust growth in the second quarter.

Apple's Old Standbys, iPods and Macs, Drive Profit

^{by Nick Wingfield (2007-07-30 工商時報)}

    Apple Inc.'s iPhone has been a magnet for hype. But the company's iPods and Macintosh computers were the stars of the quarter.

    Kengo Kubo, a sales consultant who sells Lexus cars in Tokyo, has a special way of opening a car door. He points with all five fingers to the handle, right hand followed by left. Then, he gracefully opens the door with both hands, in the same way Japanese samurais in the 14th century would have opened a sliding screen door.
    "The most important thing is to make the motion look beautiful," says Mr. Kubo, standing in a gleaming Lexus show room with live orchids growing out of trickling waterfalls.
    The screen-door technique is part of an unusual tactic under way in Japan's luxury-car wars. No. 1 car maker Toyota, behind in the luxury market, wants to fight back by plunging deep into the world of ancient Japanese hospitality traditions.

    Intel Corp., in reporting a 44% jump in second-quarter profit, signaled strong demand for chips and progress in improving the company's financial position.
    But Intel's profit margins came in below its forecast, suggesting that a long-running battle with rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc. continues to put pressure on chip prices. Intel's stock, which had run up recently on signs of improving sales, slid 4.8% in after-hours trading following the announcement.
    Intel is the dominant maker of chips that serve as calculating engines in computers, and its pronouncements are an important proxy for global technology demand. The Santa Clara, Calif., company, which lost ground to AMD between 2003 and mid-2006, launched a counterattack in the past year and regained markets share with some new products.

China's Next Aim: Healthy Market
    After several attempts, China's authorities apparently have succeeded in taking some froth out of the country's red-hot stock market. But regulators still have their work cut out for them in building the market into a stable element of the country's economy.
    After a bull run that saw the Shanghai Composite Index quadruple in less than two years, Chinese stocks where throws into a sharp decline last week when the government tripled the stamp duty on share trades, just weeks after the central bank announced a fresh series of tightening measures.

    Nokia corp.'s chief executive wants to steer the world's largest maker of cellphones toward new sources of revenue, such as the Internet.
    The restructuring of Nokia, announced yesterday, takes a step in pushing that goal by carving out a new unit focused on growth opportunities around music downloading, Internet browsing, mapping and other services.
    Under the reorganization, which will take effect Jan. 1, Nokia will divide its cellphone business into three units: mobile devices; services and software; and a markets division responsible for managing Nokia's supply chains, as well as sales and marketing.

Wal-Mart Sneezes, China Catches Cold

_{by Gordon Fairclough}

    Several months ago, Chinese clothing executive Shao Zhuliang got bad news from his U.S. agent: Wal-Mart Stores Inc., his biggest customer, wouldn't be placing any orders for the spring 2008 season.