http://www.reuters.com/article/ousivMolt/idUSTRE5914V520091002

Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N), legendary for its clout in Washington, has inexplicably halted its political fund-raising machine.

clout: power and influence: the power to direct, shape, or otherwise influence things

http://www.reuters.com/article/ousivMolt/idUSTRE59317920091004

BAE Systems (BAES.L) turned down the chance to pay 300 million pounds ($477 million) to settle a bribery investigation and is seeking to review evidence against it before trying to agree a deal, newspapers reported on Sunday. The Serious Fraud Office said this week it was prepared to prosecute Europe's biggest defense contractor over allegations the firm used bribery and corruption in arms deals in South Africa, Tanzania, Romania and the Czech Republic dating back to the 1990s.

turn down 〈提案・候補者・申込者などを〉拒絶する,

For sake of discussion, let me use the number 100 as I reconstruct the exchange...

This is a very good phrase to begin with a discussion on a certain case with artificial numbers or preconditions that you have set.

http://www.reuters.com/article/ousivMolt/idUSTRE59208120091003

Earlier this week the FDIC took steps aimed at shoring up the depleted insurance fund by proposing that banks prepay three years of their regular assessments.

deplete 使い尽くす

Currently many banks have been struggling to deal with their bad loans. Because it always leads to problems on availability of funding for banks' assets and ensuring interest payments for their debts. The regulatory capital to ensure repayment of interests on customers' deposit money has been also dried up so it must be a real tough time for goverments as well as financial institute to think how to arrange funds for them.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/82c175f6-81f2-11de-9c5e-00144feabdc0.html

He is still on the run in spite of a global alert issued through Interpol to apprehend him.

apprehend 〈犯人などを〉捕らえる，逮捕する

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/071259aa-8122-11de-92e7-00144feabdc0.html

The administration has been taken aback by the enthusiasm with which Americans have embraced the plan.

A proposal to sluice a further $2bn into the scheme now awaits approval by the Senate.

Republican senators are likely to prevent the measure being passed before the summer recess, which begins on Friday. They will, however, find it harder to sell their rectitude to the public than is usually the case.

But, however popular the scheme is, the Republicans’ instincts are right: the plan is a lemon.

The US government should not try to whip up demand by subsidising the destruction of the country’s existing stock of cars.

be taken aback　不意を打たれる; 驚く

sluice 水門を開いて〈貯水池などの〉水を放水する

recess (議会の)休会

rectitude 正直，清廉(せいれん)

lemon できそこない，欠陥品

whip up 刺激する; 励ます，盛んにする

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/acf1abc2-8051-11de-bf04-00144feabdc0.html

The SEC claimed that BofA failed to provide complete information about a $5.8bn bonus pool in a prospectus sent to investors.

In addition to the SEC probe, BofA faces a raft of shareholder suits claiming that Mr Lewis and his board did not adequately disclose Merrill’s worsening financial condition before the shareholder vote.

prospectus (会社などの)設立趣意書，(事業・計画などの)発起書.

raft 多量，多数 〔of〕

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6a1c0a60-7c0d-11de-a7bf-00144feabdc0.html

The Shanghai Composite index settled 5 per cent lower to 3,266.43, having been down 7.7 per cent at one stage, bringing a five-day rally juddering to a halt.

Fears that China’s credit growth might be choked off overshadowed a stellar market debut by China State Construction Engineering.

judder 〈機械などが〉激しく振動する

choke off 《英口語》 (どなりつけたりして)〈人を〉黙らせる 〈議論などを〉やめさせる

steller 星の 主要な; 傑出した

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/bca3a520-7b97-11de-9772-00144feabdc0.html

Some questions, such as whether the provision could be used by private litigants, were partly resolved when courts ruled that only the SEC could enforce it. Private lawsuits invoking the provision have continued to be filed nonetheless.

Whatever the court’s decision, the SEC move serves as a warning to executives, said Charles Elson, director of the corporate governance centre at the University of Delaware. “Even the threat to do it may have an effect because it will make individuals at companies more vigilant.”

litigant 訴訟当事者

invoke (法律に) 訴える

provision 規定; 条項; 条件

nonetheless それでもなお

vigilant 油断なく番をする[警備する]; 油断のない，用心深い

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a2992d28-7a00-11de-b86f-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

Humbled by the financial crisis and heavily reliant on Beijing to climb out of it, Washington has shifted gear, relegating the currency to a subset of its push for broader economic reforms in China.

The irony of the US retreat on the renminbi, though, is that China has been powerless to wean itself off its addiction to buying US debt, the other side of the bilateral financial ledger.

uneasy 不安な，心配な

greenback ドル紙幣

humble 〈人の高慢・権威などを〉くじく，折る.

reliant 頼りにして

subset 部分集合

wean 〈人を〉〔…から〕引き離す

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/fce5fbb4-7873-11de-bb06-00144feabdc0.html

Internal compliance systems at Morgan Stanley’s Hong Kong office were “haphazard”, “inefficient” and “hopelessly inadequate”, according to the prosecution in a high-profile insider trading case.

“It is clear that the monitoring was hopelessly inadequate,” she added. “Correct protocol was habitually not followed … The department failed to measure up to the gold standard of their own departmental manual.”

Mr Du’s barrister, Alexander King, told the court n Friday. “There were no breaches.

“The alleged wrongdoing by a former employee of our firm is an egregious violation of Morgan Stanley’s values and policies,” the bank said on Friday.

The prosecution alleged that Mr Du knew he was in possession of material, non-public information and took advantage of the alleged disarray at Morgan Stanley by downplaying his work with Citic on a bond issue and potential hedging deal, code-named projects Jumbo and Colorado respectively.

shamble よろよろ歩く

haphazard でたらめの; 偶然の

habitually 習慣的に

measure up 必要とされるだけの資格[能力]がある

barrister 法廷弁護士

breach 違反

egregious 実にひどい，言語道断な，とてつもない

disarray 混乱

downplay 軽視する

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/81f3125a-6cae-11de-af56-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

“We don’t want to give the impression that big change is around the corner and the present arrangements will be destabilised,” said Mr Brown.

By faulting the dollar Beijing can express its displeasure at US policy and exert leverage over the US in general, including in the broad debate over the future governance of the international financial system.

The challenge also serves as a shot across the bows for the US at a time when China is concerned about giant US government deficits and the Federal Reserve’s unorthodox monetary policy.

around the corner もう間もなく、間近、もうすぐ

destabilize 【他】 〈…を〉不安定にする，動揺[変動]させる

fault 〈…を〉非難する

shot across the bow 警告射撃

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cce85326-6af9-11de-861d-00144feabdc0.html

Four employees of Rio Tinto, the Anglo-Australian mining group, have been detained in China without explanation, raising tensions as the company is locked in tough negotiations over iron ore prices.

detain 【法】〈人を〉留置[拘留，監禁]する

iron ore 鉄鉱石

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/87953578-6a54-11de-ad04-00144feabdc0.html

The FBI affidavit alleges Mr Aleynikov, after accepting the offer from his new firm – which has yet to be identified – downloaded approximately 32 megabytes of proprietary trading platform data from his desktop computer at work as well as his laptop at home on four separate occasions between June 1 and June 5, his last day at Goldman.

Despite that attempt, Goldman retains a back-up copy of each computer’s bash history.

affidavit 宣誓供述書

proprietary 所有主の，所有の

bash 人・ものを〉ぶん殴る，強く打つ

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/77b9507a-6988-11de-bc9f-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

“The confidence and swagger of the UBS culture has been dented badly,” said Sebastian Dovey, managing partner with Scorpio.

Though reports of job cuts in the sector were rife last year, a number of banks opted to add staff.

The study also uncovered scant evidence of dissatisfied investors looking to vote with their feet and transfer funds to other asset managers in a “flight to quality”

Swiss banks also fared better than expected – with UBS reporting $4.95bn in ordinary profits – the highest of any bank surveyed.

dent くぼむ，へこむ

rife 〈悪疫・悪いことが〉流行して，広まって

uncover 〈陰謀・秘密などを〉暴露する

scant 〈知識・経験・聴衆など〉乏しい，わずかな，不十分な

fare [様態の副詞を伴って] 〈人が〉(よく，まずく)やっていく，暮らす

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c5388664-6194-11de-9e03-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

Ben Bernanke was on Thursday forced into an unusual public defence of his actions as a bank regulator amid accusations that he overstepped his authority during the frantic talks over Bank of America’s acquisition of Merrill Lynch.

Armed with hundreds of pages of subpoenaed e-mails, the House of Representatives oversight committee asked the Federal Reserve chairman whether he and his staff had forced BofA to go through with the deal, hidden details from other regulators and threatened to fire Ken Lewis, chief executive of BofA, if he tried to pull out.

Mr Lewis has said he considered invoking a “material adverse change” – or Mac – clause to cancel the deal when he learnt of Merrill’s mounting losses.

Mr Bernanke said there had been no threat, but if BofA had pulled out and then needed a bail-out there should have been repercussions.

With his term as chairman up for renewal next year and a Treasury plan to give the Fed more power in a regulatory upheaval, Mr Bernanke’s success in persuading Congress that he acted properly is crucial.

frantic 《口語》 大急ぎの，大あわての

subpoena 〈人を〉召喚する，〈人に〉召喚状を発する

invoke 訴える

clause (条約・法律の)条項

repercussions (ある事件・行動などのかなり後まで残る)影響

upheaval 大変動，激変

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2d9300c0-60a2-11de-aa12-00144feabdc0.html

The US central bank said the recession was easing and noted that energy and commodity prices had increased. But it said “substantial resource slack is likely to dampen cost pressures” and it expected that “inflation will remain subdued for some time”.

slack (商売などの)不景気(の時期)

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d594245e-600a-11de-a09b-00144feabdc0.html

The US and the European Union on Tuesday raised the stakes in a growing dispute with China lodging a joint case at the World Trade Organisation over export quotas on raw materials in the latest sign of friction over trade.

lodge 〈訴状・申告書などを〉〔…に〕提出する，差し出す; 〈反対などを〉〔…に〕申し立てる

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/eec10b2a-5f17-11de-93d1-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

China Metallurgical Group is preparing a blockbuster double stock market listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai later this year, according to people familiar with the matter.

blockbuster 超大型爆弾 《口語》 強い影響[感銘]を与える人[もの]; 大ヒット作

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e75423ac-4df8-11de-a0a1-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

General Motors will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York on Monday in a humiliating fall from grace for a symbol of America’s industrial might and the world’s biggest carmaker for much of the 20th century.

GM will say that it aims to emerge from Chapter 11 by August 1, shorn of much of its debt, four of its eight brands, and surplus plants and dealers.

GM is also likely to announce within the next day or two the long-awaited sale of Hummer, the large sport-utility vehicle that became an emblem of GM’s missteps.

humiliate 〈人に〉恥をかかせる，〈…の〉自尊心を傷つける

might 勢力，権力，実力

shorn(shearの過去分詞) 〔…を〕奪い取られて 〔of〕

misstep 踏み誤り[はずし]; 失策