Passage 1
Ford Motor Co., despite losing more than $26 billion over the last two years, still has no intention of asking for government assistance but will instead draw down 10.1 billion in existing credit lines. “It’s a very volatile market,” says Ford Chairman Alan Mulally. “It’s not in our plan at all to access federal funds,” he said even though “business conditions have deteriorated around the world more rapidly than expected.”
Ford reported it lost $5.9 billion, or $2.46 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2007 due to declining domestic demand, restructuring charges and losses at its overseas subsidiaries. For the full year Ford lost $14.6 billion as it revenues shrank by 36 percent. The latest losses, Ford’s already steep mountain of debt—some $26 billion —and the industry’s shaky financial condition are all stirring anxiety among investors, lenders, and potential car buyers. Yet Mulally stresses that Ford is in a better strategic position than its struggling rivals.
GM and Chrysler are expected to present preliminary plans to the Treasury by Feb. 17 demonstrating their viability, and final plans in March, if either of those plans fails to convince the federal government, a bankruptcy filing could follow. Such a huge negative event might prompt Ford to reconsider its position, says Mulally, but otherwise it expects to avoid asking for emergency federal aid.
43.Investors, lenders, and potential car buyers are quite confident in Ford.
A、True
B、False
【正确答案】：B
【名师解析】:根据文章内容，Ford Motor Co. 在过去两年亏损超过260亿美元，并且由于全球业务条件的迅速恶化，投资者、贷款人和潜在汽车买家都感到焦虑。此外，文章中提到了汽车行业的财务状况不稳定，以及GM和Chrysler可能需要向财政部提交计划以证明它们的可行性，否则可能会面临破产。因此，选项A "Investors, lenders, and potential car buyers are quite confident in Ford." 是错误的。正确的答案是B，即投资者、贷款人和潜在汽车买家对福特的信心并不高。
