1. The fiscal cliff

1、财政悬崖

On Dec. 31 the U.S. federal government is going to hit a potentially disastrous so-called fiscal cliff. Under current law, taxes are set to jump and spending will be cut. This is partly due to the planned expiration of the Bush-era and other tax cuts and partly to spending cuts agreed to last year.

2012年12月31日，美国联邦政府可能遭遇一场被称为“财政悬崖的灾难。根据现行法律，税收将大幅增加，开支会减少。部分原因是布什政府时期制定的减税措施和其他一些减税措施按计划将到期，还有部分原因是去年达成的减支方案。

This must not be allowed to happen. The International Monetary Fund, the Congressional Budget Office and most economists agree that the net effect of this sharp budget tightening, at a time when the economy is weak, could tip the U.S. economy back into recession.

但你决不能允许这样的情况发生。国际货币基金组织(International Monetary Fund, 简称:IMF)、国会预算办公室(Congressional Budget Office)和大部分经济学家都认为，在美国经济不景气的当口，严厉财政紧缩措施的净效应会使经济重陷衰退。

Middle-class taxpayers would see a big jump in tax bills. Andrew Smithers, a financial consultant in London who called the last two financial crises, suspects it could also tank the stock market.

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