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| Some branches of Woolworths stores have closed down |
媒體英語會帶大家一起學習BBC撰稿人在報道世界大事時常用到的單詞和短語。
Background: 英國家喻戶曉的老牌零售商 Woolworths 瀕臨倒閉。這家有著99年歷史的企業很可能會關閉其下的幾百家連鎖超市，其上萬名員工將會面臨失業危機。
Questions: 請在聽下面錄音的時候試著回答這些問題。這是一個用來幫助你提高聽力技能的練習。
1. How long has Woolworths operated in the UK?
2. How much had the business been on sale for?
3. What competitors have damaged Woolworths' ability to operate?
4. Do many employees face redundancy?
Woolworths Faces Bankruptcy 老牌零售商瀕臨倒閉
Woolworths is one of the best known names on the British High Street. It's been in business nearly a century 世紀.
Many of its 800 stores are likely to close following the company's decision to call in administrators 接管者 after an attempt to sell the business for a token 象征性的 ￡1 failed.
The company has huge debts 債務. The trigger 導火索 for the collapse has been Britain's slide towards recession 經濟蕭條, which has cut into consumer spending 消費者消費.
However, the business had been in trouble for years.
Known for low-priced general merchandise, Woolworths has struggled 掙扎 in face of competition 競爭 from supermarkets expanding beyond groceries and a new generation of internet retailers 網絡零售商.
Many of the store group's 25,000 employees are likely to lose their jobs. Some profitable 可盈利的，可賺錢的 areas such as the DVD publishing business will survive.
GLOSSARY 詞匯表 (收聽發音, 請單擊英語單詞)
Answers
1. How long has Woolworths operated in the UK?
Nearly 100 years.
2. How much had the business been on sale for?
￡1
3. What competitors have damaged Woolworths ability to operate?
Supermarkets and online stores have taken much of their market-share.
4. Do many employees face redundancy?
Yes, many of the 25,000 staff will lose their jobs.
