plastic utensils
polyester clothing
to increase [-z], v. steadily
increase [-s], n.
over much of this period
in comparison with (syn. as compared with)
on the assumption of ()
abundant oil , ,
an abrupt change
oil-producing nations ,
to be located in
to belong to
OPEC (the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) ( )
to raise the price
( encourage consumers ,
to economize on its use
to forecast correctly
cutbacks in quantity demanded
to be dependent on oil
to be available (syn. to be in stock; ant. to be out of stock) potential substitutes ()
to anticipate , ,
substantial price increase [-s] ,
to lead (led, led) to (syn. to cause, to entail, to result in)
reduction in sales
to be profitable for ,
OPEC members .
to quote prices in US dollars per barrel ,
to triple ['tripl] ,
a gradual rise
sharp, dramatic increase
to take by surprise
upheaval [i:]
to inflict upheaval on the world economy ( )
to respond to prices
a producer
to determine what, how and for whom to produce ,
to increase six-fold
oil-based products
artificial substitutes for petroleum production processes
fuel-efficient aircraft
oil-intensive products
switch to
commuters ,
car-pools ,
to choke off the demand
substitute commodities -
to bid up the price
to encourage production
to contemplate solar energy ()
to reflect a shift away from... towards (to)... (, ) ... ...
OPEC revenues
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nearly $300 billion 300
industrialized Western nations ()
in contrast
oil-importing nations ,
to give up the production ()
in exchange for
to require
the buying (syn. purchasing, spending) power
an intricate interconnected system
a disturbance , ,
to ripple throughout the entire economy
some activities expanded/contracted /
to pay higher wages to attract the extra labour
to renew ,
demand for
to secure wage increases
price slump
to persist ,
to exceed
the available supply
to become more scarce in economic terms ,
Assignments
I. Suggest the Russian equivalents
to increase steadily; try to economize on the use of...; to choke off the demand;
to encourage consumers to purchase smth; to encourage the production of...
II. Replace the parts in italics by synonyms
three economic questions; to give a share of resources; to have scarce supplies of raw materials; a sudden change; realising that; potential replacements; to encourage people who use oil; price increases six times; try to cut down on the use of oil
III. Find in the text antonyms for the following words rare, scarce; outputs; expensive; exports; straightforward; get, acquire; not to need; getting smaller
IV. Fill in the gaps with the words and expressions from the text
1. Economics is the study of how people choose __ scarce resources to satisfy their __.
2. Economic activity was organized on the assumption of__ oil.
3. In 1973 74 there was an __ change in oil prices.
4. __ countries correctly forecast that __ in the quantity demanded would be small.
5. Most nations are very dependent on oil and have few commodities available as __ for oil.
6. Oil prices are traditionally __ in US dollars per barrel.
7. The price of oil __, from $2.90 to $9 per barrel.
8. There was another __ between 1978 and 1980, from $12 to $30 per ban-el.
9. The dramatic price increases inflicted __ on the world economy.
10. These responses, __ prices, are part of the process by which most Western societies __ what, how and for whom to produce.
11. Chemical firms will develop __ for petroleum inputs to their production processes; airlines will look for more __ aircraft.
12. Finns and __ reduce their use of__ products.
13. Commuters form __ or move closer to the city.
14. High prices not only __ for oil-related commodities; they also encourage consumers to purchase __.
15. OPEC __ from oil sales increased from $35 billion in 1973 to nearly $300 billion in 1980.
16. The rise in oil prices raised __ of OPEC.
17. The economy is an __, interconnected system and a __ anywhere ripples throughout the entire economy.
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18. __ industries may have to pay higher wages to attract the __ labour that they require.
19. A scarce resource is one for which the demand at a zero price would __ the available supply.
V. Find in the text English equivalents for the following
; ; ; ; ; ; ; / ;
VI. Explain in English
prices are quoted; a gradual rise; a sharp increase; household; commuters;
commodities
VII. Check your grammar
Present Tenses
Use the following verbs to complete the paragraph below:
concern, base, discuss, be, show, take up, hope for, say, offer, wish, live, suggest, provide, govern
Students __ economics for different reasons. Some __ a career in business, some __ for a deeper understanding of government policy, and some ___ about the poor or the unemployed. This book __ an introduction, which__ that economics__ a live subject. It__ real insights into the world in which we __. The material that we__ in this book __ by two ideas. The first __ that there __ a body of economics, which has to be learned in any introductory course. The second __ on the belief that modem economics is more readily applicable to the real world than traditional approaches __.
Past Tenses
Write the following sentences out in full, like this:
Keynes/famous/ his/ day/ economist/ own/ a/in... (be) Keynes was a famous economist in his own day
1915/ Treasury/ London/ in/ he/ in/ the/... (join)
best-known/ 1935/ his/ book/ in... (publish)
public/ war/ during/ he/ service/ the/ to... (recall)
5th/ in/ Cambridge/ June/ Keynes/ 1883/ on... (bear)
student/ he/ distinguished/ a... (be)
instrumental/ the IMF/ in/ the/ 1944/ World Bank/ he/ in/ and/ starting... (be)
Cambridge University/ to/ 1902/ he/ in... (go)
a/ he/ as/ Cambridge/ teacher/ to... (return)
time/ he/ a/ economist/ by/ as/ this/ brilliant... (accept)
also/ heavy/ his/ he/ by/ workload... (exhaust)
The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money/ it... (call)
1919/ in/ he/ with/ Treaty of Versailles/ he/ because/ the... (resign, disillusion)
April/ on/ 21st/ he/ 1946... (die)
book/ conventional/ this/ thinking/ enemies/ many/ and/ him... (go against, make)
