Is it time to kick Russia out of the BRICs （金磚四國）? If so, it may end up sounding like a famous ball-point pen maker-BIC. An argument is being made that Goldman Sach’s famous marketing device（策略）,the BRICs, should really be the BICs.

“Is Russia really worth the name BRICs?” asks Anders Aslund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, in an article for Foreigh Policy. Aslund, who is also co-author with Andrew Kuchins of “The Russian Balance Sheet”, thinks the Russia of Putin and Medvedev is just not worthy of inclusion alongside Brazil, India and China in the list of future economic powerhouses. He writes:

“The country’s economic performance has fallen to such a weak level that one must ask whether it has any say at all on the global economy, compared with the other members of its group. I have just returned from Moscow, which is always dull around this season. For the last seven years, Russia has taken very few measures to improve its economy. Instead, the state has been living on oil and gas. ”

Economically, Aslund has the numbers on his side. The International Monetary Fund figures that the Russian economy will fall by 6.7 percent in 2009, while China will grow 8.5 percent and India 5.4 percent. There is less of a case for Brazil, with a fall of 0.7 percent, but it is still doing

far better than Russia.

But the BRICs are not just about economy. As is mentioned above, it is a marketing device to encourage investors to focus on the big promising players. From an investment standpoint, it could be argued that Russia is leading the BRICs. Its stock（股票）market is up 128 percent this year while around 80 percent is for the other three.

At very least, however, Russia’s economic underperformance and stock market outperfoumance does suggest it is indeed one of the group.

1.According to the passage, which country will enjoy the biggest increase in 2009?

2.According to Aslund, Russia shouldn’t be a BRIC partly because_______.

3.From the passage we know that ________.

4.The author seems to ________.

Is it time to kick Russia out of the BRICs （金磚四國）? If so, it may end up sounding like a famous ball-point pen maker-BIC. An argument is being made that Goldman Sach’s famous marketing device（策略）,the BRICs, should really be the BICs.

“Is Russia really worth the name BRICs?” asks Anders Aslund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, in an article for Foreigh Policy. Aslund, who is also co-author with Andrew Kuchins of “The Russian Balance Sheet”, thinks the Russia of Putin and Medvedev is just not worthy of inclusion alongside Brazil, India and China in the list of future economic powerhouses. He writes:

“The country’s economic performance has fallen to such a weak level that one must ask whether it has any say at all on the global economy, compared with the other members of its group. I have just returned from Moscow, which is always dull around this season. For the last seven years, Russia has taken very few measures to improve its economy. Instead, the state has been living on oil and gas. ”

Economically, Aslund has the numbers on his side. The International Monetary Fund figures that the Russian economy will fall by 6.7 percent in 2009, while China will grow 8.5 percent and India 5.4 percent. There is less of a case for Brazil, with a fall of 0.7 percent, but it is still doing

far better than Russia.

But the BRICs are not just about economy. As is mentioned above, it is a marketing device to encourage investors to focus on the big promising players. From an investment standpoint, it could be argued that Russia is leading the BRICs. Its stock（股票）market is up 128 percent this year while around 80 percent is for the other three.

At very least, however, Russia’s economic underperformance and stock market outperfoumance does suggest it is indeed one of the group.

According to the passage, which country will enjoy the biggest increase in 2009?

       A．China.      B．Russia.     C．Brazil.      D．India.

According to Aslund, Russia shouldn’t be a BRIC partly because_______.

       A．Russia’s economic performance is far worse than the other three

       B．Russia’s leaders are not good at managing economy

       C．Russia has taken effective measures to improve its economy

       D．Russia will no longer attract investors from other countries

From the passage we know that ________.

      A．Anders Aslund is working for the Russian government

       B．Russia outperfoumed the other three countries in stock market

       C．most people disagree Russia is included in BRICs

       D．the BRICs would end up being the BICs sooner or later

The author seems to ________.

       A．suggest it’s time to kick Russia out of the BRICs?

       B．feel worried about the economy of the BRICs

       C．think Russia is worth being one of the group

       D．show disappointment to Russia’s economy

E
Is it time to kick Russia out of the BRICs （金磚四國）? If so, it may end up sounding like a famous ball-point pen maker-BIC. An argument is being made that Goldman Sach’s famous marketing device（策略）,the BRICs, should really be the BICs.
“Is Russia really worth the name BRICs?” asks Anders Aslund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, in an article for Foreigh Policy. Aslund, who is also co-author with Andrew Kuchins of “The Russian Balance Sheet”, thinks the Russia of Putin and Medvedev is just not worthy of inclusion alongside Brazil, India and China in the list of future economic powerhouses. He writes:
“The country’s economic performance has fallen to such a weak level that one must ask whether it has any say at all on the global economy, compared with the other members of its group. I have just returned from Moscow, which is always dull around this season. For the last seven years, Russia has taken very few measures to improve its economy. Instead, the state has been living on oil and gas. ”
Economically, Aslund has the numbers on his side. The International Monetary Fund figures that the Russian economy will fall by 6.7 percent in 2009, while Vhina will grow 8.5 percent and India 5.4 percent. There is less of a case for Brazil, with a fall of 0.7 percent, but it is still doing far better than Russia.
But the BRICs are not just about economy. As is mentioned above, it is a marketing device to encourage investors to focus on the big promising players. From an investment standpoint, it could be argued that Russia is leading the BRICs. Its stock（股票）market is up 128 percent this year while around 80 percent is for the other three.
At very least, however, Russia’s economic underperformance and stock market outperfoumance does suggest it is indeed one of the group.
52．According to the passage, which country will enjoy the biggest increase in 2009?
A．China.      B．Russia.     C．Brazil.      D．India.
53．According to Aslund, Russia shouldn’t be a BRIC partly because_______.
A．Russia’s economic performance is far worse than the other three
B．Russia’s leaders are not good at managing economy
C．Russia has taken effective measures to improve its economy
D．Russia will no longer attract investors from other countries
54．From the passage we know that ________.
A．Anders Aslund is working for the Russian government
B．Russia outperfoumed the other three countries in stock market
C．most people disagree Russia is included in BRICs
D．the BRICs would end up being the BICs sooner or later
55．The author seems to ________.
A．suggest it’s time to kick Russia out of the BRICs?
B．feel worried about the economy of the BRICs
C．think Russia is worth being one of the group
D．show disappointment to Russia’s economy

Is it time to kick Russia out of the BRICs （金磚四國）? If so, it may end up sounding like a famous ball-point pen maker-BIC. An argument is being made that Goldman Sach’s famous marketing device（策略）,the BRICs, should really be the BICs.
“Is Russia really worth the name BRICs?” asks Anders Aslund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, in an article for Foreigh Policy. Aslund, who is also co-author with Andrew Kuchins of “The Russian Balance Sheet”, thinks the Russia of Putin and Medvedev is just not worthy of inclusion alongside Brazil, India and China in the list of future economic powerhouses. He writes:
“The country’s economic performance has fallen to such a weak level that one must ask whether it has any say at all on the global economy, compared with the other members of its group. I have just returned from Moscow, which is always dull around this season. For the last seven years, Russia has taken very few measures to improve its economy. Instead, the state has been living on oil and gas. ”
Economically, Aslund has the numbers on his side. The International Monetary Fund figures that the Russian economy will fall by 6.7 percent in 2009, while China will grow 8.5 percent and India 5.4 percent. There is less of a case for Brazil, with a fall of 0.7 percent, but it is still doing
far better than Russia.
But the BRICs are not just about economy. As is mentioned above, it is a marketing device to encourage investors to focus on the big promising players. From an investment standpoint, it could be argued that Russia is leading the BRICs. Its stock（股票）market is up 128 percent this year while around 80 percent is for the other three.
At very least, however, Russia’s economic underperformance and stock market outperfoumance does suggest it is indeed one of the group.
【小題1】According to the passage, which country will enjoy the biggest increase in 2009?

       Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand. It has a ___111___of just under a million people and is located on North Island. This seaside city is an important center for business and industry. It is also the most exciting city in New Zealand with people of many different cultures ___112___there.

       The history of the city goes back 650 years when the Maoris settled in the area. European settlement began in 1840 when the British arrived. Auckland was the capital of New Zealand for some time. Later, the capital moved to Wellington, because it was more ___113___. Since 1945, the city of Auckland has grown and it now has large modern suburbs. In 1985, the New Zealand ___114___made the whole country a ___115___zone and since then Auckland has been a center for protest ___116___nuclear testing in Asia Pacific.

       My experience can’t be described as merely an experience. In face, there is no word I can think of that can adequately describe it. It did not ___117___for a few hours or days, but much longer-almost my ___118___life. Without it, I can’t even begin to ___119___what I would be like today.

       For as long as I can remember I have wanted to play a musical instrument. The ___120___of putting my flute together and playing for the first time is something I will never forget. At first, ___121___music seemed difficult and ___122___, but as I continued, it became interesting and fun.

       Chen Yifei was a very successful artist. His soft portraits of beautiful women are very ___123___. In 1997, one of his paintings sold for US $503,000. The painting, named Poppy, is a ___124___example of Chen’s style. In the painting, a young woman sits ___125___and is deep in ___126___. Her hand holding the fan is elegantly ___127___above her knees. To emphasize the woman even more, Chen ___128___a lot of detail to the fan and the cloth of her dress, and chooses to paint the ___129___behind the woman black. The folds of her dress are very ___130___painted.