直观的教训是，延续了将近一年之久的金融危机还远未结束。愁容惨淡的投资人正把目光投向各类银行。

　　The financial crisis claims another two victims-and once again the taxpayer picks up the pieces
　　金融危机又落两城——纳税人再度收拾残局

　　IT WAS another of those frantic weeks that were never meant to happen in the world’s most advanced economy. On July 13th Hank Paulson, America’s treasury secretary, stood on his department’s steps like some emerging-market finance minister, and unveiled an emergency plan to save Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two mortgage giants that owe or guarantee $5.2 trillion. Two days later, Ben Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, put the fear of God into the markets, warning Congress of a foul amalgam of inflation and economic distress.
　　本周，和前几回一样，狂乱无序的局面再一次出人意料地出现在这个全球最发达的经济体。7月13日，美国财长汉克·保尔森（Hank Paulson）像某位新兴市场的金融大臣一样，站在财政部门前的台阶上，宣布了一项紧急计划：援手房利美(Fannie Mae)和房地美(Freddie Mac)。这两家房贷巨擘亏欠或担保的抵押额高达52亿美元。两天后，美联储主席伯南克带着人们对他如同“上帝”般的敬畏，出手房贷市场，警告国会，称通货膨胀和经济困境或将并肩袭来。

　　The immediate lesson is that the financial crisis, nearly a year old, is far from over (see our coverage, beginning with this article). Gloomy investors are gunning for banks of all types. In America the prices of houses and shares are falling, and the cost of food and energy has soared. Consumers are almost certain to cut back. The euro-area economy may have shrunk in the latest quarter. Central banks around the world are having to raise interest rates to curb inflation, and the dollar looks vulnerable. Even if the downturn proves less sharp than pessimists fear, it is likely to last longer than optimists hope.
　　直观的教训是，延续了将近一年之久的金融危机还远未结束。愁容惨淡的投资人正把目光投向各类银行。美国的房价和股价持续下跌，粮食和能源成本飙升，消费者紧缩开支几成定局，欧元区经济在本季度可能缩水，各国央行不得不提升利率遏制通胀，美元呈现疲软之势。这一轮的经济低迷，其影响即便在事实上没有悲观者担心得那样严重，但周期则很可能比乐观派希望得要长。

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