(经贸英语文章选读)Unit 13 Economic Crisis.ppt

Unit 13 Economic Crisis CONTENTS TEACHING AIMS After studying this unit, you are required to: Have a general idea of the Great Depression and the Economic Crisis. 2. Understand the causes of the Great Depression. 3. Discuss the reasons for the Economic Crisis beginning in 2007. 4. Master the difficult words and expressions. Text A The Great Depression Questions: How much information do you know about the Great Depression? Do you know the causes of the Great Depression? Do you know the great people or events during the Great Depression? Background of the Great Depression When the US entered World War I in April 1917,labor and capital were quickly mobilized on an impressive scale by the federal government. After World War I, the US economy moved into a long expansion. The prevalent belief was that the economy had entered a new era of continuous growth and prosperity which would eventually eliminate poverty. During the 50 years before the 20th century, the changes were the shift from an agricultural to an industrial economy, the increase of productivity, technological development, discovery of new energy sources, investments in human capital, and economies of scale. Start of the Great Depression The Great Depression (1929-1933)dashed all these hopes to pieces and turned the optimists into pessimists. The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The *timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s. Economic historians usually attribute the start of the Great Depression to the sudden devastating collapse of US stock market prices on October 29, 1929, known as Black Tuesday. However, some dispute this conclusion, and see the stock crash as a symptom, rather than a cause of the Great Depression. Causes of the Great Depression There were multiple causes for the first downturn in 1929. These includ