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  3. It was inevitable that any of President George W. Bush’s fans had to be very disappointed by his decision to implement high tari

It was inevitable that any of President George W. Bush’s fans had to be very disappointed by his decision to implement high tari

admin2009-04-27  73
问题     It was inevitable that any of President George W. Bush’s fans had to be very disappointed by his decision to implement high tariffs on steel imported to the U.S. The president’s defense was pathetic. He argued that the steel tariffs were somehow consistent with free trade, that the domestic industry was important and struggling, and that the relief was a temporary measure to allow time for restructuring. One reason that this argument is absurd is that U.S. integrated steel companies ("Big Steel") have received various forms of government protection and subsidy for more than 30 years.
    Instead of encouraging the industry to restructure, the long-term protection has sustained inefficient companies and cost U.S. consumers dearly. As Anne O. Krueger, now deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, said in a report on Big Steel: "The American Big Steel industry has been the champion lobbyist and seeker of protection....It provides a key and disillusioning example of the ability special interests to lobby in Washington for measures which hurt the general public and help a very small group."
    Since 1950s, Big Steel has been reluctant to make the investments needed to match the new technologies introduced elsewhere. It agreed to high wages for its unionized labor force. Hence, the companies have difficulty in competing not only with more efficient producers in Asia and Europe but also with technologically advanced U.S. mini-mills, which rely on scrap metal as an input. Led by Nucor Cor., these mills now capture about half of overall U.S. sales.
    The profitability of U.S. steel companies depends also on steel prices, which, despite attempts at protection by the U.S. and other governments, are determined primarily in world markets. These prices are relatively high as recently as early 2000 but have since declined with the world recession to reach the lowest dollar values of the last 20 years. Although these low prices are unfortunate for U.S. producers, they are beneficial for the overall U.S. economy. The low prices are also signal that the inefficient Big Steel companies should go out of business even faster than they have been.
    Instead of leaving or modernizing, the dying Big Steel industry complains that foreigners dump steels by selling at low prices. However, it is hard to see why it is bad for the overall U.S. economy if foreign producers wish to sell us their goods at low prices. After all, the extreme case of dumping is one where foreigners give us their steel for free and why would that be a bad thing?
选项 A、will increase the state wealth.
B、will threaten trade monopoly.
C、will raise their competitiveness.
D、will ultimately hurt consumers.
答案D
解析 题干问："根据Anne Krueger的观点，长期政府对钢铁企业的保护将…"。根据原文第2、3、4自然段，长期政府对钢铁企业的保护将"伤害到消费者"，答案选项表达了此意。而选项"增加政府的财富"，"威胁行业的垄断"以及"提高企业的竞争"皆与原文意思相反，不符合题意。
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