考研英語閱讀理解精讀100篇：Unit 7

Unit 7

High-frequency trading firms—the lightning-quick, computerized companies that have risen in the last decade to dominate the nation’s stock market—are now struggling to hold onto their gains.

Profits from high-speed trading in American stocks are on track to be, at most, $1.25 billion this year, down 35 percent from last year and 74 percent lower than the peak of about $4.9 billion in 2009, according to estimates from the brokerage firm Rosenblatt Securities. By comparison, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase each earned more in the last quarter than the high-speed trading industry will earn this year.

While no official data is kept on employment at the high-speed firms, interviews with more than a dozen industry participants suggest that firms large and small have been cutting staff, and in some cases have shut down. The firms also are accounting for a declining percentage of a shrinking pool of stock trading, from 61 percent three years ago to 51 percent now, according to the Tabb Group, a data firm.

It is a swift reversal for trading firms that have often looked to other investors like profit machines, thanks to high-powered software and superfast data connections that can take advantage of small changes in the price of a stock.

High-speed trading is far from disappearing from the market, but the struggles facing these firms have been greeted with enthusiasm by some traditional traders and investors who have viewed the firms as formidable adversaries, or worse, market manipulators that create sudden spikes and drops in share prices. Peter Costa, a longtime trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, said the fading presence of the firms could “restore some order to stock markets.”

Regulators are still grappling with whether the rise of high-speed firms has been a net benefit or loss for investors, so it is hard to pinpoint what effect the decline of these firms will have on the markets. Many market experts have argued that the technical glitches that have recently hit the market have been a result of a broader trend of the market splintering into dozens of automated trading services and a lack of human oversight.

注（1）：本文選自The New York Times；

注（2）：本文習(xí)題命題模仿對象為2010年真題Text 1。

1. It is indicated in Paragraphs 1 and 2 that ______.

A) high-frequency trading firms are still dominating the nation’s stock market

B) high-frequency firms have lost a lot of money

C) the profits from high-speed trading are declining compared to last year

D) by comparison, high-speed trading companies make more money than others

2. The decline of high-frequency trading firms is characterized by ______.

A) struggling to make profits

B) the shrink of stock trading market

C) the reduction of profits and employee numbers

D) the domination of the nation’s stock market

3. The phrase “a swift reversal”（Line 1, Paragraph 4） most probably refers to ______.

A) possession of high-powered software and superfast data connections

B) new investors like profit machines

C) taking in charge of the price of a stock

D) that trading firms are not making huge profits as before

4. Which of the following would Peter Costa most probably agree on？

A) High-speed trading firms should better disappear from the market.

B) Some traditional traders and investors are afraid of that disappearance.

C) Some traditional traders and investors are formidable adversaries.

D) High-speed trading firms would face the struggle with enthusiasm.

5. What can be learned about the high-speed firms according to the last paragraph?

A) Regulators think the prospect of these firms is promising.

B) There is no assertion about the influence of these firms.

C) The technical glitches are caused by these firms.

D) These firms have splintered into dozens of automated trading services.

篇章剖析

本文主要講述了高頻交易公司開始走下坡路的態(tài)勢。第一段簡單介紹了高頻交易公司的性質(zhì)及頹勢；第二、三段引用數(shù)據(jù)具體例證交易公司利潤的下滑及裁員、倒閉等情況；第四、五段介紹了高頻交易公司走下坡路對其他投資者來說是好事；最后一段則指出調(diào)控者對高頻交易公司帶來的影響并不確定，專家指出了市場出現(xiàn)問題的原因。

詞匯注釋

brokerage /?br??k?r?d?/ n. 代理公司；代理人；經(jīng)紀人；傭金；回扣

reversal /r??v??sl/ n. 逆轉(zhuǎn)

formidable /?f??m?d?bl/ adj. 強大的；可怕的

adversary /??dv?s?ri/ n. 對手；敵手

manipulator /m??n?pj?le?t?(r)/ n. 操作者；操縱器

spike /spa?k/ n. （價格、數(shù)量的）突然上升；長釘，道釘；釘鞋

grapple /?ɡr?pl/ v. 努力解決；抓住；與…格斗

pinpoint /?p?np??nt/ v. 確定；準確描述

glitch /gl?t?/ n. 小問題；小故障；失靈

splinter /?spl?nt?(r)/ v. 分裂；裂成碎片

oversight /???v?sa?t/ n. 監(jiān)督，照管；疏忽

難句突破

It is a swift reversal for trading firms that have often looked to other investors like profit machines, thanks to high-powered software and superfast data connections that can take advantage of small changes in the price of a stock.

主體句式：It is a swift reversal for trading firms..., thanks to...

結(jié)構(gòu)分析：該句結(jié)構(gòu)較復(fù)雜，修飾成分較多，容易引起混淆。主句中的that定語從句用來修飾trading firms，分句中的that定語從句修飾high-powered software and superfast data connections。而整個分句作主句的原因狀語，可理解為“由于…；幸虧…”。

句子譯文：由于高性能的軟件和速度超快的數(shù)據(jù)連接可以利用股票價格上的微妙變化，交易公司不再是其他投資者眼中的賺錢機器，這是一個極大的轉(zhuǎn)變。

題目分析

1. C 細節(jié)題。第一、二段指出高頻交易公司由鼎盛開始走下坡路，并且利潤值也在下降。A、D兩項與文意不符，故排除。高頻交易公司雖然利潤下降，但并未虧損很多，B項也不正確。只有C選項說法正確。

2. C 細節(jié)題。題目要求找出高頻交易公司開始衰退的標志。文章二、三段講述了高頻交易公司從利潤到員工數(shù)量都在下降的趨勢，故C項正確。A項中努力獲利與原文努力守住盈利之勢不符。高頻公司衰退是股票交易市場緊縮的原因，后者并非前者的特點，邏輯有誤。D項與原文中的下滑趨勢不符。

3. D 語義題。由第四段可知，由于高性能的軟件和速度超快的數(shù)據(jù)連接可以有效地利用股票價格上的微妙變化，因此高頻交易公司不再是其他投資者眼中的賺錢機器，這是一個極大的轉(zhuǎn)變。這種轉(zhuǎn)變就是上文提到的高頻交易公司不再像原來一樣可以賺得巨額利潤，只有D項符合題意。

4. A 情感態(tài)度題。第五段指出，皮特·科斯塔是紐約證券交易市場交易所的一名老交易人，他說，這些公司的衰退可以“使股票市場恢復(fù)些秩序”。可見皮特·科斯塔和上文中傳統(tǒng)交易人和投資者的看法一致，都不喜歡高頻交易公司。B、C、D項均與文意不符，只有A項正確。

5. B 語義題。最后一段講述了調(diào)控者的不確定態(tài)度及市場專家的猜測。A選項明顯錯誤。C、D選項邏輯上和原文不符。只有B項說法正確。

參考譯文

高頻交易公司，指最近十年涌現(xiàn)出的高速、智能化的公司，曾主導(dǎo)著國家的股票市場。而現(xiàn)在它們卻奮力掙扎著守住盈利之勢。

根據(jù)代理公司羅森布拉特證券的估計，今年從美國股票高頻交易中獲得的利潤最多將達到12.5億美元，與去年相比下降了35%，與2009年的巔峰值49億美元相比下降了74%。相比之下，富國銀行和摩根大通各自在過去的一個季度都比高頻交易產(chǎn)業(yè)今年一年將要賺的多。

雖然沒有官方資料顯示高頻交易公司的員工雇傭情況，但對超過12個行業(yè)雇員的采訪顯示，大小型公司都在裁員，而且有一些已經(jīng)關(guān)門停業(yè)了。數(shù)據(jù)公司塔布集團調(diào)查稱，這些公司也是日益減少的股票交易從三年前的61%萎縮到現(xiàn)在51%的原因所在。

由于高性能的軟件和速度超快的數(shù)據(jù)連接可以利用股票價格上的微妙變化，交易公司不再是其他投資者眼中的賺錢機器，這是一個極大的轉(zhuǎn)變。

高頻交易還遠遠不會從市場上消失，但是一些傳統(tǒng)的交易人和投資者正在以極大的“熱情”看待交易公司面臨的掙扎。在這些傳統(tǒng)的交易人和投資者眼中，這些交易公司都是極強大的對手，更甚者，是可以使股價激增或劇降的市場操縱者。皮特·科斯塔是紐約證券交易所的一名老交易人，他說，這些公司的衰退可以“使股票市場恢復(fù)些秩序”。

調(diào)控者還在努力搞清楚高頻公司的興盛到底會給投資者帶來凈利潤還是凈損失，因此還無法確定這些公司的衰退會給市場帶來什么影響。許多市場專家認為，近來沖擊市場的技術(shù)問題是市場已經(jīng)更加明顯地分裂為幾十個自動交易業(yè)務(wù)并缺乏人力監(jiān)管的結(jié)果。