【慢速听力 3 篇 】 Fiat Chrysler Joins with Peugeot to Save on ...

No.1

AS IT IS

Fiat Chrysler Joins with Peugeot to Save on Technology Costs

December 18, 2019

(COMBO) (FILES) This combination of file pictures created on October 30, 2019 shows the FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) logo (L) displayed on March 6, 2019 during a press day ahead of the Geneva International Motor Show in Geneva, and the logo of French carmaker PSA Peugeot.

Two of the world’s largest car makers are joining their businesses so they can move production to electric vehicles more effectively.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Peugeot agreed Wednesday on a merger to form the world’s fourth largest car manufacturer.

Officials say the combined companies will be better able to deal with tighter pollution rules and the development of new driving technologies.

The companies said in a joint statement that the new group will be led by PSA’s Chief Executive Officer Carlos Tavares. Fiat Chrysler’s chairman John Elkann will become head of the board of directors.

The combined company, however, lacks one important thing after the merger announcement: a name.

Top company officials say the deal is expected to take 12 to 15 months to complete. The combined company will have a yearly revenue of nearly $190 billion. It will produce 8.7 million cars.

The company would be smaller than only Germany’s Volkswagen, the Renault-Nissan alliance and Japan’s Toyota.

The merger also is expected to save billions of dollars a year company officials said in a statement. The savings would come from sharing vehicle designs, parts and technology. Those savings, the companies said, would be invested in products including “new energy vehicles,” “autonomous driving” and “connectivity.”

The companies also said that no factories would be closed under the deal. But officials said cost-cutting would take place.

Both Peugeot and Fiat build a lot of small car models which compete with each other in the European market. Mike Manley, CEO of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said that could be “an early target” of measures to combine efforts and save on costs.

Mike Oliver is a professor at the University of Edinburgh Business School. He said it is not clear how the merged company will increase sales.

“Neither partner has products that can easily be sold under the others’ brands in new or existing markets,” he said. Oliver also noted that the combined companies are weak in China, the world’s largest car market.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is itself the product of a successful merger between Italy’s Fiat and America’s Chrysler. The French government rescued PSA Peugeot in 2014 and still owns 12 percent of the company.

PSA Peugeot chief Tavares spoke about the new company’s lack of presence in a major market saying, “We think we should be doing better in China.” He said the deal has the support of Chinese partner Dongfeng Motor Corporation, which is expected to have a 4.5 percent share of the company.

Fiat has been looking for an industrial partner to help with the cost of developing electric vehicles. Earlier talks with France’s Renault failed because of the French government’s concern over Renault’s Japanese partner Nissan.

The deal was first announced in October. At the time, it was called an equal merger. PSA Peugeot will have one more seat on the board of directors than Fiat Chrysler.

The new company will be based in the Netherlands while its stock will be traded in Paris, Milan and New York.

I’m Mario Ritter, Jr.

Colleen Barry and Angela Charlton reported this story for AP News. Mario Ritter Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

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Words in This Story

merger –n. the act or process of combing two or more businesses into one

revenue –n. money that is made or paid to a business or organization

autonomous –n. the power to do something such as driving by oneself, (example: a car that can drive without the assistance of a person)

connectivity –n. the state of being connected, especially connected through a computer network

brand –n. a kind of product made by a certain company under a certain name

No.2

AS IT IS

Five Years after Reduced Tensions with US, Cubans Say Hopes Decreasing

December 18, 2019

People try to board a public bus in Havana, Cuba, September 11, 2019. (REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini)

This week marks the fifth anniversary of the end of nearly 60 years of hostilities between Cuba and the United States.

On December 17, 2014, bells could be heard ringing across Havana as leaders of the two countries announced that they would reestablish diplomatic ties. Five years later, it is as if that historic event never happened, Cubans say.

The Associated Press (AP) reports that President Donald Trump has spent about as much time undoing détente as former president Barack Obama spent building it. These days, relations between the two sides are at their lowest point since the end of the Soviet Union.

Trump has cut back U.S. visits to Cuba. He has barred cruise ships, flights to most Cuban cities and unguided educational trips to the island.

The number of workers at the U.S. Embassy in Havana has been cut after diplomats reported health problems. The cause of the problems is still unknown. The embassy closed its visa office, and ended special five-year visas for Cubans this year. That means travel to the United States has become nearly impossible for many Cubans who once flew often to South Florida to see family members and buy supplies.

The Cuban economy is weak. Tourism numbers are down as is normal financial aid from Venezuela. Venezuela is in the middle of its own economic crisis.

In 2014, the announcement of reestablished ties felt like a new beginning, people in Cuba told The AP. Now, the two years of détente under Obama feel like it was a temporary break, they said.

“There was hope, thinking that there would be an opening with Obama,” said 37-year-old Alfredo Piñera. “And with Trump, it's like a child's dream, gone up in smoke.''

Piñera works in Mexico, and returns to Cuba often to see his wife and sons. He said he hoped that the end of hostilities with the U.S. government would bring a better life for him, his family and his homeland.

He said, “I felt good...There was hope for improvement, for change in this country, economically, politically, socially.”

Piñera said he and his family were surviving in economic hard times, which are not nearly as bad as just after the Soviet Union collapsed. But, he added, the loss of the excitement they felt five years ago has been hard for Cubans.

On Tuesday, the Cuban government celebrated the anniversary of the return of three of five Cuban agents jailed in the United States. The agents were arrested as they carried out raids on anti-Castro groups. The agents were exchanged for a jailed spy and Alan Gross, who worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development. The exchange set the détente in motion, but that was not noted on Cuban state television.

The Trump administration says it is trying to cut off the flow of money and oil to Cuba’s economy. It hopes to stop the Cuban government from supporting Venezuela.

Carlos Fernández de Cossio is the director of U.S. affairs for the Cuban Foreign Ministry. He said some powerful people in the United States were working to end relations between the U.S. and Cuba. He added that the island's government was prepared.

He said, “Cuba can't be taken by surprise by that reality.”

I’m Jonathan Evans.

The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

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Words In This Story

bell – n.an object usually made of metal that sounds a clear musical note when struck

ring – v.to make a clear sound

détente – n.an easing of relations between two countries that once were strong enemies

tourism– n.the business of people visiting a place for pleasure

excitement – n.incitement

No.3

AS IT IS

US Lawmakers Impeach President Trump

December 18, 2019

House members vote as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., stands on the dais, during a vote on article II of impeachment against President Donald Trump, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2019, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

EDITOR'S NOTE: The audio file for this story is not yet available.

American President Donald Trump was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday night. He became the third president in the country’s 243-year history to be impeached -- the Constitution’s answer to official “high crimes and misdemeanors.”

The legislators charged Trump abuse of office for personal political gain and blocking -- or obstructing -- the congressional impeachment investigation.

The Democratic Party controls the House of Representatives. Trump is a member of the Republican Party.

Democrats led Wednesday’s voting, describing the process as part of their duty to protect the Constitution. Republican lawmakers, however, continued to support their party’s leader. They argued that Democrats are impeaching Trump because they cannot beat him in the 2020 presidential election.

The articles of impeachment now go to the Senate for trial. The trial is expected to begin in January. A two-thirds majority is necessary for a guilty finding.

While Democrats had the majority in the House to impeach Trump, Republicans control the Senate. Most observers expect the Senate to find the president not guilty of the charges.

Democratic lawmakers say Trump abused his power by withholding $391 million in military aid from Ukraine last summer. Congress approved the aid earlier this year. The Ukrainians eventually received the assistance.

The Democrats say Trump withheld the aid because he wanted Ukrainian officials to announce an investigation of former Vice President Joe Biden. Biden is seeking the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.

The House’s impeachment resolution said Trump “betrayed the nation by abusing his high office to enlist a foreign power in corrupting democratic elections,” and then blocked Congress’ oversight like “no president” in U.S. history.

White House officials publicly released records of two telephone calls that took place in July between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Zelenskiy has said he did not feel pressured by Trump. Trump says he did nothing wrong and described the telephone calls as “perfect.”

As the House debated the articles of impeachment throughout day Wednesday, Trump expressed his anger about the process on Twitter. He wrote, “SUCH ATROCIOUS LIES BY THE RADICAL LEFT, DO NOTHING DEMOCRATS. THIS IS AN ASSAULT ON AMERICA, AND AN ASSAULT ON THE REPUBLICAN PARTY!!!!”

Only two other presidents have been impeached: Andrew Johnson in 1868, and Bill Clinton in 1998. Neither leader was removed from office. In 1974, Richard Nixon resigned from the presidency when it appeared he would be impeached.

The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

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Words in This Story

impeach - v. to charge (a public official) with a crime done while in office

misdemeanor - n. a crime that is not very serious : a crime that is less serious than a felony

enlist - v. to get the support and help of (someone or something)

atrocious - adj. very evil or cruel

assault - n. the crime of trying or threatening to hurt someone physically