Former Fed Chief Says US Financial Crisis is 'Credit Tsunami'
格林斯潘：信贷飓风会增负面影响

　
Former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman, Alan Greenspan, has predicted further negative impacts for Americans from the U.S. and global financial crisis, which he called a credit tsunami. Greenspan and two other current and former U.S. officials, faced tough questioning from lawmakers in a congressional hearing.

前美联储主席格林斯潘预测，美国和全球的金融危机对美国人的负面影响还会增加。他把这个危机成为“信贷飓风。”格林斯潘和另外两名现任的和离任的政府官员在国会举行的听证会上受到了严厉的质询。

The longest-serving chairman of the U.S. central bank until he was replaced by Ben Bernanke in 2006, Greenspan called the financial and credit crisis a "once in a century credit tsunami" brought about by heavy demand for securities backed by sub-prime mortgages.

格林斯潘是美国历史上担任美联储主席职务时间最长的一位中央银行行长。他在2006年退休，把这个职位交给了伯南克。格林斯潘称现在这场金融危机和信贷危机是由于对次贷支持的证券需求太大而引起的“百年不遇的信贷飓风。”

The crisis has been much broader than anything I could have imagined, Greenspan said, leaving him and other economic experts in a state of shocked disbelief.

格林斯潘表示，这场危机的规模超过了他想象到的任何危机。他和其他经济学家们都对此感到震撼，难以置信。

"Given the financial damage to date, I cannot see how we can avoid a significant rise in layoffs and unemployment," he said. "Fearful American households are attempting to adjust as best they can to a rapid contraction in credit availability, threats to retirement funds and increased job insecurity."

“从到目前为止造成的金融破坏来看，我看不出我们怎么才能够避免裁员和失业的大幅度增加。美国家庭惶恐不安，都在想办法进行自我调节，适应信贷急速萎缩、退休基金受到威胁和就业安全正在下降的情况。”

For the crisis to end, Greenspan added, U.S. housing prices must stabilize, something he said is still many months in the future.

格林斯潘认为，要结束危机就必需稳定房屋价格。不过，他表示，房价稳定还需要好多个月的时间。

A future economic landscape, he said, would be characterized by exceptional investor caution, particularly where investment instruments are concerned, leading to a more sustainable sub-prime mortgage market.

在谈到未来的经济状况时，格林斯潘表示，特征之一就是投资人会格外谨慎，尤其是在投资工具的使用方面。这样会使得次贷市场得到持续的发展。

Greenspan has faced criticism that as Federal Reserve chairman for more than 18 years, he resisted tighter market regulation, and kept U.S. interest rates too low, fueling a surge in risky sub-prime mortgages.

格林斯潘受到的一个批评是，他在担任美联储主席的18年中拒绝强化市场管理，把美国的利率降得太低，造成了风险很高的次贷数量的飞速上涨。

Committee Democrats questioned decisions and statements he made about the U.S. housing market.

听证会上的民主党议员对格林斯潘做出过的有关房地产市场的决定和发表过的有关评论提出了质疑。

Democratic panel chairman Henry Waxman asked if the crisis has changed his ideological positions on regulation and the operation of free markets.

主持听证会的民主党议员亨利·瓦克斯曼(Henry Waxman)问格林斯潘，这场危机是否改变了他对监管和对自由市场运做的政策理念。

"In other words, you found that your view of the world, your ideology was not right, it was not working," asked Waxman.

“换句话说，你是否发现你的世界观，你的理念是否不对头，是否行不通呢？”

"Precisely, that is precisely the reason I was shocked, because I had been going for 40 years or more with very considerable evidence that it was working exceptionally well," Greenspan replied.

格林斯潘回答说：“的确，这正是我感到震惊的原因。40多年来，有大量的证据显示，这种理念特别行之有效。我一直是这么看的。”

Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Christopher Cox was sharply challenged by Maryland Democrat Elijah Cummings about efforts now to crack down on one aspect of the credit mess.

Cummings: "You became SEC chairman over three years ago. Why didn't you act sooner to require this disclosure of credit default swaps?"

Cox: "If you wish me to answer explicitly, where was I, I was here with you, indeed I was vice-chairman of this committee, when Congress had the opportunity to do what I am asking Congress to do now, which is to close this regulatory hole."

Cummings: "But I'm talking about the three years that you were there, we paid your salary, the taxpayers the ones that are losing their homes right now paid your salary for three years."

Minority Republicans also questioned decisions by Greenspan, Cox, and former Treasury Secretary John Snow, although Republican criticisms were not as sharp as Democrats.

国会占少数的共和党议员也质疑格林斯潘、考克斯和前财政部长约翰·斯诺的决定，但是共和党的批评没有民主党那样尖锐。

In a separate hearing, the U.S. treasury official overseeing the $700 billion program approved by Congress to rescue financial institutions, said it is having a positive effect, but Neel Kashkari added a cautionary note.

在单独举行的另外一个听证会上，负责监督执行国会批准的7千亿美元救助金融机构方案的美国财政部官员卡斯卡里说，救助方案正在产生积极的效果，但是他语调谨慎。

"Since the announcement of our capital purchase program, we have seen numerous signs of improvement in our markets and in the confidence in our financial institutions," he said. "While there have been recent positive developments, the markets remain fragile."

“自从宣布了我们的资本购买方案以来，我们已经看到许多市场和金融机构信心得到改善的迹象。尽管出现了这些积极的发展势头，但是市场仍然脆弱。”

Thursday's hearing took placed amid continued volatility in U.S. financial markets, amid investor concerns about the economy, and new figures showing increases in home foreclosures.

在星期四听证会进行的同时，美国金融市场依然动荡不止，投资者依然担心经济形势，新的数据显示被银行收回的房屋数量还在增加。

At the White House, press secretary Dana Perino declined to use the word recession to describe the economic situation, but said President Bush knows the country is in "for a rough ride."