学习重点
1. Homework review
2. Vocabulary study
3. Researching a market
4. Business practice in China
5. Pie chart writing
6. Oral practice
7. Business passage reading
8. Homework
I. Homework review
covering letter noun [countable]
British English a letter that you send with documents or a package that gives information about its contents 说明信
American Equivalent: cover letter
Send your CV and a covering letter to the address below. 请把你的简历和说明信寄到下面的地址。
Sample Writing Answer
Dear Mr. Smith,
Post of Assistant Marketing Manager for China and the South East Asia Region
With reference to your advertisement in “China Daily” of Friday 27 November 2005, I am writing to apply for the above post.
The job description states that the work will involve planning and implementing marketing strategies for the whole China/South East Asia region, combined with considerable travelling to liaise with the Company’s agents and customers.
I have spent the past three years doing similar work for a smaller company, covering South East Asia and Southern China, as a junior marketing assistant, and, with the experience I have gained, I feel I am ready to take on greater challenges and to realise greater achievements.
As my enclosed resume shows, I have a BA in Finance and Management from Beijing University, and an MBA from the University of Harvard, the USA. I speak and write fluent English, Mandarin and Cantonese, and I have a sound working knowledge of Japanese and Korean. I am fully computer-literate.
With my qualifications and background, together with enormous energy to put into my work, I would very much like to take on the challenges that your company and this job offer. Working with the Marketing Manager and the full marketing team, I am sure that I can contribute positively to expanding your Company’s business in the Asia-Pacific region.
I look forward to hearing from you and hope you will invite me to be interviewed. Thank you for your kind attention.
Yours sincerely,
Zhang Weiwei
liaise verb [intransitive]
to exchange information with someone who works in another organization or department so that you can both be more effective 联络
liaise with
Council officers are liaising closely with local groups. 委员会官员与当地组织密切联络。
liaise between
The education officer liaises between students, schools and colleges. 教育官员在学生、学校和大学之间进行联络。
邮政管制
Vocabulary Study
英语单词中的一次多义现象
As Scotland’s First Minister I have a key role in representing my country.
参考译文;作为苏格兰的第一首相，代表这个地区是我重要的职责。
(具有某种地理文化、语言等特点的区域、地区、领域、范围)
country noun
n the country 乡下
a) land that is outside towns and cities, including land used for farming
ￚsynonym the countryside
I’ve always wanted to live in the country.
b) all the people who live in a particular country全体乡下人
The President has the support of the country.
n [uncountable] country and western music乡村音乐
I’m a big fan of country.
n 请思考以下单词除了你常见的词义以外，还有没有与之不同的意思。
let, plan, plant, policy, event, court, course
let ▶RENT◀ [transitive] especially British English出租，租用
I’ve let my spare room to a student.
Would you consider letting me the garage for a few months?
We let the smaller studios out to local artists.
To Let ：招租(宣传标语)
written (=written on a sign outside a building to show that it is available for renting)
plan ▶MAP◀ 平面图
a drawing similar to a map, showing roads, towns, and buildings
a street plan of London
an office plan
plant ▶FACTORY◀工厂
[countable] a factory or building where an industrial process happens
a huge chemical plant 一家大型的化工厂
power plant 电厂
policy [countable] a contract with an insurance company, or an official written statement giving all the details of such a contract保险合同
There’s a clause条款 in the policy that I’d like to discuss.
I’ve just renewed the policy (=arranged for it to continue). 续签这份保险合同
Does the policy cover theft and fire?
event [countable] one of the races or competitions that are part of a large sports competition 体育赛事
The next event will be the 100 metres.
The 800 metres is not his best event.
court [countable] an area made for playing games such as tennis
squash/tennis/basketball etc court
▶KING/QUEEN◀
a) [countable] the place where a king or queen lives and works 宫廷
the royal courts of Europe 欧洲皇室宫廷
b) the court
the king, queen, their family, and their friends, advisers etc 皇室成员
Several members of the court were under suspicion.
There was a taste in court circles for romantic verse.
Court officials denied the rumours.
court verb [transitive]
1 to try hard to please someone, especially because you want something from them 努力取悦
His campaign team have assiduously courted the media. 他的宣传团队小心谨慎地想取悦媒体。
2 court danger/death etc
formal to behave in a way that makes danger etc more likely 引起(危险、死亡等)
To have admitted this would have courted political disaster. 承认这件事会引起政治失败。
3 be courting
old-fashioned if a man and a woman are courting, they are having a romantic relationship and may get married 谈恋爱
That was back in the 1960s when we were courting.
4 old-fashioned if a man courts a woman, he spends time being nice to her because he hopes to marry her 追求
course
n [countable]one of the separate parts of a meal
We had fish for the main course.
n [countable] an area of land or water where races are held, or an area of land designed for playing golf
an 18-hole course
story noun [countable]
1 ▶FOR ENTERTAINMENT◀ 故事
fairy/ghost/love etc story
a detective story
2 ▶NEWS◀ 新闻消息
a front-page story
3 ▶EVENTS◀话，对事物的描述
an account of something that has happened, usually one that people tell each other, and which may not be true
Her parents did not believe her story.
4 ▶EXCUSE◀ 解释;借口
Where were you? And don’t give me some story about working late!
5 ▶HISTORY◀ 发生在重要人物身上的历史
the Charlie Parker Story
He wanted to have his life story told on film.
6 ▶BUILDING◀ 美式拼写 一层楼
American English a floor or level of a building
British Equivalent: storey英国英语
a fifty-story building
7 ▶OF A FILM/PLAY ETC◀ 电影、小说等故事情节
The story is similar in all her books.
8 ▶LIE◀ 谎言(对小孩说)
You shouldn’t tell stories.
Researching a market
1. Speaking.
What research would a company do before entering a foreign market?
Research into the demand for the product, market conditions, currency exchange rates, import/export mechanisms or tariffs, ways of doing business (e.g. through agents), etiquette in that culture, cultural differences.
mechanism noun [countable]
1 part of a machine or a set of parts that does a particular job 机械，零部件
the brake mechanism 刹车部件
a clock mechanism 钟表机械
2 a system that is intended to achieve something or deal with a problem 机制
mechanism for (doing) something
existing mechanisms for decision making 现有的决策机制
mechanism to do something
The Army has set up mechanisms to help jobless ex-soldiers get work. 军队建立机制以此来帮助那些退伍无工作的士兵找到工作。
3 a system or a way of behaving that helps a living thing to avoid or protect itself from something difficult or dangerous 保护体系
defence/control/survival mechanism 防卫体系/控制体系/生存体系
When a person is ill, the body ’s natural defence mechanisms come into operation. 当人生病时，身体中的自然防卫系统就开始起作用了。
4 the way that something works 运转方式
mechanism of
the mechanism of the brain 大脑运转的方式
tariff noun [countable]
1 a tax on goods coming into a country or going out of a country 关税
tariff on
The government may impose tariffs on imports. 政府可能要强制征收进口货物税。
2 British English a list of fixed prices charged by a hotel or restaurant, for example for the cost of meals or rooms 价目表(饭店、餐馆对房间或饭菜的标价)
3 British English a list or system of prices which mobile phone companies charge for the services they provide 电信资费
etiquette noun [uncountable]
the formal rules for polite behaviour in society or in a particular group礼节，礼仪(行业中的)道德规范，规矩
strict rules of professional etiquette 专业礼节中的严格规定
Understanding the importance of market research in terms of culture diversity
Sometimes products don’t sell well in a new market. Suggest what went wrong in these cases.
1. Western companies had problems selling refrigerators in Japan until they changed the design to make them quieter.
2. In Saudi Arabia, newspaper adverts for an airline showed an attractive hostess serving champagne to happy passengers. A lot of passengers cancelled their flight reservation.
3. A soap powder advertisement had a picture of dirty clothes on the left, a box of soap in the middle and clean clothes on the right. The soap didn’t sell well in the Middle East.
4. A company had problems when it tried to introduce instant coffee to the French market.
5. Several European and American firms couldn’t sell their products in Dubai when they ran their advertising campaign in Arabic
6. An airline company called itself Emu, after the Australian bird. But Australians didn’t want to use the airline.
7. A TV commercial for a cleaning product showed a little girl cleaning up the mess her brother made. The commercial caused problems in Canada.
8. A toothpaste manufacturer couldn’t sell its product in parts of South East Asia.
9. An American golf ball manufacturer launched its products in Japan packed in boxes of four. It had to change the pack size.
10. A ladies’ electric shaver sold well throughout Europe, but not in Italy.
If you don’t have any idea about the reason behind the problems, try to match the problems with the following reasons.
· In Japan the word for ‘four’ sounds like the word for ‘death’. Things don’t sell well packed in fours.
· People thought the commercial was too sexist and reinforced old male/female stereotype.
· Unveiled women don’t mix with men in Saudi Arabia and alcohol is illegal.
· 90% of the population came from Pakistan, India, Iran and elsewhere, so Arabic was the wrong language.
· It seems Italian men prefer ladies’ legs unshaven.
· The advertisers forgot that in that part of the world, people usually read from right to left.
· The people in this area didn’t want white teeth. They thought darkly-stained teeth were beautiful and they tried to blacken them.
· Japanese homes were small and sometimes walls were made of paper. It was important for the refrigerators to be quiet.
· Making ‘real’ coffee was an important part of the French way of life. Instant coffee was too casual.
· The emu can’t fly.
emu noun[countable]
plural emus or emu
a large Australian bird that can run very fast but cannot fly 鸸鹋
2. Reading.
The text on the opposite page comes from DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) in the UK. It is aimed at British companies considering business with China.
DTI (英国)贸易工业部
Doing Business in China
amount verb
amount to something phrasal verb
if figures, sums etc amount to a particular total, they equal that total when they are added together 达到
Time lost through illness amounted to 1,357 working days. 由于疾病而耽误的工作日达到1357天。
pledge verb [transitive]
▶PROMISE◀ 保证给与，发誓
to make a formal, usually public, promise that you will do something正式、向公众作出的许诺，保证
pledge something to something/somebody
Moore pledged $100,000 to the orchestra at the fund-raising dinner. 摩尔许诺在筹资晚宴上拨款10万美元给交响乐团。
pledge to do something
The new governor pledged to reduce crime. 新州长许诺减少犯罪。
pledge that
Herrera pledged that his company will give aid to schools. …许诺说他的公司将会资助学校。
pledge (your) support/loyalty/solidarity etc
He pledged his cooperation. 他做出承诺，保证合作。
pledge yourself to (do) something
Trade unions pledged themselves to resist the government plans. 工会保证他们会抵制政府的计划。
▶MAKE SOMEBODY PROMISE◀
to make someone formally promise something 使发誓
Employees were pledged to secrecy. 公司让员工承诺保守秘密。
pledge noun [countable]
▶PROMISE◀
formal a serious promise or agreement, especially one made publicly or officially(政府、政党领袖)诺言，保证，誓言
pledge of
a pledge of support for the plan 保证对这个计划表示支持
pledge to do something
the government’s pledge to make no deals with terrorists 政府保证绝不与恐怖分子作交易
make/take/give a pledge
Parents make a pledge to take their children to rehearsals.
keep/fulfil/honour a pledge
Eisenhower fulfilled his election pledge to end the war in Korea.
▶MONEY◀
a promise to give money to an organization 给与资助的许诺
Donors have made pledges totaling nearly $4 million. 捐献者许诺给出总数达4000万元的资助款。
pledge of
a pledge of $200 to the public TV station 承诺资助公共电视台的200元钱
▶SOMETHING VALUABLE◀
something valuable that you leave with someone else as proof that you will do what you have agreed to do 抵押，典当
acknowledge verb [transitive]
▶ADMIT◀
to admit or accept that something is true or that a situation exists 承认
He acknowledges that when he’s tired he gets bad-tempered.他承认说，只要他一疲劳，他的脾气就会不好。
Claire acknowledged that she was guilty. 克莱尔承认她犯了罪。
This is a fact that most smokers readily acknowledge. 这是许多吸烟者都马上会承认的事实。
▶RECOGNIZE SOMETHING’S IMPORTANCE◀
[usually passive] if people acknowledge something, they recognize how good or important it is 意识到
acknowledge something as something
The film festival is acknowledged as an event of international importance. 该电影节被认为是国际性的重要活动。
be widely/generally acknowledged to be something 被广泛认为/被普遍认为
▶ACCEPT SOMEBODY’S AUTHORITY◀
to accept that someone or something has authority over people 承认某人的权威
Many of the poor acknowledged him as their spiritual leader. 许多穷人都认定他是他们的精神领袖。
▶THANK◀
to publicly announce that you are grateful for the help that someone has given you 公开宣布感激之情
We wish to acknowledge the support of the university. 我们希望表达贵校对我们的支持的感激心情。
▶SHOW YOU NOTICE SOMEBODY◀
to show someone that you have noticed them or heard what they have said 示意听到或注意到
Tom acknowledged her presence by a brief glance. 汤姆扫了一眼，示意她，他已经看到她了。
▶SAY YOU HAVE RECEIVED SOMETHING◀
to let someone know that you have received something from them 确认收到某物
I would be grateful if you would acknowledge receipt of this letter. 如果你在收到这封信后能确认收到的话，我将万分感激。
strength noun
