To compete effectively in interna- tional markets, a nation’s businesses must sustain investment in intangible as Line well as physical assets. Although an 美国投资资本虽多,但使用不 (5) enormous pool of investment capital 当。 exists in the United States, the country’s capital investment practices put United States companies at a competitive disadvantage. (10) United States capital investment 零散不可预见的税策和高联邦 practices, shaped by sporadic and 预算赤字塑造了投资操作,鼓 unpredictable changes in tax policy and 励过低和过高投资。 high federal budget deficits, encourage both underinvestment and overinvest- (15) ment. For example, United States 例如,低投资发展计划,如改 companies invest at a low rate in inter- 善供应商关系(无即时效应), nal development projects, such as 高投资外部计划如合并(即时 improving supplier relations, that do not 有效应)。 offer immediate profit, and systemati- (20) cally invest at a high rate in external projects, such as corporate takeovers, that yield immediate profit. Also, United States companies make too 美国公司在不同形式投资方式 few linkages among different forms of 间建立的联系太少。 (25) investments. Such linkages are impor- 这些联系非常重要,例如工厂 tant because physical assets, such as 生产力的提高需要相应投资到 factories, may not reach their potential 无形资产如员工培训和产品重 level of productivity unless companies 设计。 make parallel investments in intangible (30) assets such as employee training and product redesign. In general, unlike Japanese and German investment 不像日本和德国投资注重长期 practices, which focus on companies’ 利益,美国投资喜欢马上有财 long-term interests, United States 益的。 (35) investment practices favor those forms of investment for which finan- cial returns are most readily available. By making minimal investments in 最小限度的无形资产投资会减 intangible assets, United States com- 弱美国未来的竞争力。 (40) panies reduce their chances for future competitiveness. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q35: The passage is primarily concerned with A. evaluating strategies for improving United States competitiveness in international markets B. illustrating the possible uses of investment capital C. analyzing some failings of capital investment practices in the United States D. suggesting reasons for increasing linkages among different types of investments E. contrasting the benefits of investment in physical assets with the benefits of investment in intangible assets -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q36: According to the passage, which of the following characterizes the capital allocation strategy of United States companies? - They tend to underinvest in intangible assets.
- They tend to invest heavily in product redesign.
- They tend to underinvest in physical assets.
- They make parallel investments in internal and external projects.
- They seek to allocate capital in ways that reduce their tax burden.
By making minimal investments in intangible assets, United States companies reduce their chances for future competitiveness.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q37: Which of the following best describes the purpose of the second paragraph? - To propose a solution to the problem introduced in the first paragraph
- To provide support for an argument presented in the first paragraph
- To provide data to refute an assertion made in the first paragraph
- To discuss the sources of investment capital mentioned in the first paragraph
- To discuss the competitiveness of international markets alluded to in the first paragraph
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