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UNITED STATES’ ECONOMY IN THE 21^st CENTURY

The United States entered the 21st century with an economy that was bigger, and by many measures more successful, than ever. It endured a global depression in the first half of the 20th century, surmounted challenges of sharp inflation, high unemployment, and enormous government budget deficits in the second half of the century. The nation finally enjoyed a period of economic calm in the 1990s: prices were stable, unemployment dropped to its lowest level in almost 30 years.

The American economic system endured a continuous change. Its dynamism often has been accompanied by some pain and dislocation – from the consolidation of agricultural sector to the massive restructuring of the manufacturing sector that saw the number of traditional factory jobs fall sharply in the 1970s and 1890s. As American see it, however, the pain also brings substantial gains. Jobs may be lost, but they can be replaced by new ones in industries with greater potential – high –technology industries: computers and biotechnology, or in rapidly expanding service industries such as health care and computer software.

Because of the huge size of its economy, the United States necessarily will be a major actor in global matters, such as ozone depletion, deforestation, marine pollution, climate change, global warming, and will influence the global economy. Its affluence also complicated its role. The U.S. has achieved a high standard of a strong economy, which by no means must be a prerequisite to social progress.

1. Ответьте на вопросы по тексту:

1. What economy did the USA enter the 21st century?

2. What did the USA endure in the first half of the 20th century?

3. What did the nation enjoy in the 1990s?

4. Why is the American economic system characterized by dynamism?

5. Why will the United States be a major actor in global matters?

2. Найдите в тексте эквиваленты слов и выражений профессионально-ориентированной лексики:

Вступить в 21ый век, успешные меры, мировая депрессия, острая инфляция, высокая безработица, бюджетный дефицит, реструктуризация промышленного сектора, истощение озонового слоя, уничтожение лесов, загрязнение морей, глобальное потепление.

3. Расскажите, используя профессионально-орентированную лексику, что говорится в тексте о:

• global depression in the first half of the 20th century;
• a period of economic calm in the 1990s;
• changes in American economic system;
• global ecological problems.