Questions from 36 to 40 are based on the following passage:
　　Against this background, the WTO faces several daunting challenges. The first is to continue bringing down tariffs on traded goods. Average penalties have fallen steadily since the GATT’s formation but even the most open economies retain lofty barriers: for instance, America still charges a tariff of 14.6% on import of clothing, five times higher than its average levy.
　　Resistance to tariff cuts is strongest in agriculture. According to Tim Josling, a trade expert at Stanford University, tariffs and other barriers on farm goods average a crippling 40% worldwide and create distortions that “destroy huge amounts of value”. A new set of global farm talk is planned to start in 1999. At the least, you might think, these could lock in impressive reforms in Latin America and encourage further watering-down of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy. But they will prove difficult: squabbles over agriculture almost sank the Uruguay round.

A:fair trade rules. B:free trade C:export tax reduction. D:several challenges.

The protection of cultural diversity from a political and economic point of view in fact became pressing with globalization, which is characterized by the liberalization on a large scale of economic and commercial exchange, and thus, what has been called the commodification of culture. It has been noted, for instance, that over the past 20 years, trade in cultural goods has quadrupled and the new international rules (WTO, OECD) on trade are increasingly removing State support and protection measures in favour of national goods and services in the name of market freedom and free trade.
For those in favour of the promotion of cultural diversity, which includes Canada, France and the Group of 77 (group of developing countries), the aim is above all to obtain from the United States the guarantee that the “Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions”, signed by UNESCO in November 2005, would not be subordinated to international trade instruments. Indeed, for the United States and other supporters of free trade, the convention is a had idea and the measures referred to above stem quite simply from an interventionist conception of the State which is not likely to favour the market. Subsidies to cultural enterprises, the imposition of broadcast quotas and restrictions on foreign ownership of the media would, for them, interfere with the natural development of the market. In addition, even though it is not official, the convention on cultural diversity is for many Americans an attempt to undermine the global supremacy of their audiovisual industries.
If the general understanding of cultural diversity is based mainly on binary distinctions such as modern culture/local culture, the reality of cultural diversity is not binary, but stems from respect for and acceptance of differences, dialogue, and the quest for shared values, in order to leave behind the monologism that is a feature of the information society.
In this setting, diversity is consequently a way of approaching the structure of how we live together, based on the acceptance of a plural vision of the world. We can see then that cultural diversity is perceived here as the integration, rather than the superposition or juxtaposition of cultures and that the information society in which it is expressed is above all a society of shared knowledge.
The commodification of culture is a feature of

A:cultural diversity. B:globalization. C:international trade. D:information technology.

Accounting has become political. Fair-value rules, which require assets to be marked to market prices, are blamed by some for exaggerating banks’ losses. Although it will take years to establish whether banks’ accounts have painted too bleak a picture, the rows are already in full swing. Confidence in "efficient" market prices has been hammered, as has the principle that accounts are designed mainly for investors.
The Intemational Accounting Standards Board (IASB), which sets rules for most countries apart from America, has made tactical concessions to avoid the nightmare scenario of banks and politicians writing the rules themselves. On November 12th it issued new rules for financial assets that will be optional from this year and mandatory from 2013.
Loans, or securities similar to loans, will be held at the price banks paid for them, provided the bit of the firm that owns them is not engaged in trading. Everything else will be held at fair value. Most observers, including the IASB, reckon this will cut the proportion of assets held at fair value. Critically, for those who believe most firms try to warm up, if not fully cook, their books, the notes to the accounts will disclose all assets at fair value.
The IASB also proposes a rearrangement of how bad debts are recognized. Instead of booking losses as things go sour, they will be spread over the life of a loan, although the draft rules do not go as far as Spain’s system of "generic provisions" which leads to more reserves being built up in good times than in bad, smooth- ing profits even more. The IASB also wants to end the practice of banks marking the price of their own debt to market, though details are not agreed.
The IASB has made big concessions. Yet it is the European Commission (EC) which decides if the European Union adopts the standard-setter’s new rules. The G20 has called for independent, global standards, that "reaffirm... the framework of fair value", but a few countries, notably France, are hostile. In a letter to Sir David Tweedie, the IASB’s chairman, the commission said the rules "may not yet have struck the fight balance". The IASB will probably plough on and hope the commission backs down.
The IASB’s position has been weakened by differences with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), which sets rules in America and which wants to merge eventually with the IASB. The FASB has yet to produce proposals on financial assets and is more wedded to a fair-value regime. It also faces a proposal in Congress that could allow America’s new systemic-risk regulator to suspend the rules. Strength comes from unity--without it, accounting risks becoming just another tool for governments to attempt to manage the economic cycle.
The commission’s letter to Sir David Tweedie is mentioned to show that

A:the IASB should have made bigger concessions. B:France is hostile towards the IASB’s new rules. C:the EC is not in favor of the IASB’s new rules. D:the IASB’s new rules need the EC’s approval.

The protection of cultural diversity from a political and economic point of view in fact became pressing with globalization, which is characterized by the liberalization on a large scale of economic and commercial exchange, and thus, what has been called the commodification of culture. It has been noted, for instance, that over the past 20 years, trade in cultural goods has quadrupled and the new international rules (WTO, OECD) on trade are increasingly removing State support and protection measures in favour of national goods and services in the name of market freedom and free trade.
For those in favour of the promotion of cultural diversity, which includes Canada, France and the Group of 77 (group of developing countries), the aim is above all to obtain from the United States the guarantee that the “Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions”, signed by UNESCO in November 2005, would not be subordinated to international trade instruments. Indeed, for the United States and other supporters of free trade, the convention is a had idea and the measures referred to above stem quite simply from an interventionist conception of the State which is not likely to favour the market. Subsidies to cultural enterprises, the imposition of broadcast quotas and restrictions on foreign ownership of the media would, for them, interfere with the natural development of the market. In addition, even though it is not official, the convention on cultural diversity is for many Americans an attempt to undermine the global supremacy of their audiovisual industries.
If the general understanding of cultural diversity is based mainly on binary distinctions such as modern culture/local culture, the reality of cultural diversity is not binary, but stems from respect for and acceptance of differences, dialogue, and the quest for shared values, in order to leave behind the monologism that is a feature of the information society.
In this setting, diversity is consequently a way of approaching the structure of how we live together, based on the acceptance of a plural vision of the world. We can see then that cultural diversity is perceived here as the integration, rather than the superposition or juxtaposition of cultures and that the information society in which it is expressed is above all a society of shared knowledge.

A:cultural diversity. B:globalization. C:international trade. D:information technology.

Questions from 36 to 40 are based on the following passage: Against this background, the WTO faces several daunting challenges. The first is to continue bringing down tariffs on traded goods. Average penalties have fallen steadily since the GATT’s formation but even the most open economies retain lofty barriers: for instance, America still charges a tariff of 14.6% on import of clothing,five times higher than its average levy. Resistance to tariff cuts is strongest in agriculture. According to Tim Josling,a trade expert at Stanford University, tariffs and other barriers on farm goods average a crippling 40% worldwide and create distortions that “destroy huge amounts of value”. A new set of global farm talks is planned to start in 1999. At the least,you might think, these could lock in impressive reforms in Latin America and encourage further watering-down of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy.But they will prove difficult: squabbles over agriculture almost sank the Uruguay round.

A:fair trade rules B:free trade C:export tax reduction D:several challenges

Questions from 31 to 35 are based on the following passage: Against this background, the WTO faces several daunting challenges. The first is to continue bringing down tariffs on traded goods. Average penalties have fallen steadily since the GATT’s formation but even the most open economies retain lofty barriers: for instance, America still charges a tariff of 14.6% on import of clothing, five times higher than its average levy. Resistance to tariff cuts is strongest in agriculture. According to Tim Josling, a trade expert at Stanford University, tariffs and other barriers on farm goods average a crippling 40% worldwide and create distortions that “destroy huge amounts of value”. A new set of global farm talks is planned to start in 1999. At the least, you might think, these could lock in impressive reforms in Latin America and encourage further watering-down of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy. But they will prove difficult: squabbles over agriculture almost sank the Uruguay round.

A:fair trade rules B:free trade C:export tax reduction D:several challenges

Questions from 31 to 35 are based on the following passage: Against this background, the WTO faces several daunting challenges. The first is to continue bringing down tariffs on traded goods. Average penalties have fallen steadily since the GATT’s formation but even the most open economies retain lofty barriers: for instance, America still charges a tariff of 14.6% on import of clothing, five times higher than its average levy. Resistance to tariff cuts is strongest in agriculture. According to Tim Josling, a trade expert at Stanford University, tariffs and other barriers on farm goods average a crippling 40% worldwide and create distortions that “destroy huge amounts of value”. A new set of global farm talks is planned to start in 1999. At the least, you might think, these could lock in impressive reforms in Latin America and encourage further watering-down of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy. But they will prove difficult: squabbles over agriculture almost sank the Uruguay round.

A:NEW TRADE RULES B:UNFAIR TRADE RULES C:TRADE BARRIERS FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES D:TARIFF CHALLENGES TO WTO

Questions from 36 to 40 are based on the following passage: Against this background, the WTO faces several daunting challenges. The first is to continue bringing down tariffs on traded goods. Average penalties have fallen steadily since the GATT’s formation but even the most open economies retain lofty barriers: for instance, America still charges a tariff of 14.6% on import of clothing, five times higher than its average levy. Resistance to tariff cuts is strongest in agriculture. According to Tim Josling, a trade expert at Stanford University, tariffs and other barriers on farm goods average a crippling 40% worldwide and create distortions that “destroy huge amounts of value”. A new set of global farm talks is planned to start in 1999. At the least, you might think, these could lock in impressive reforms in Latin America and encourage further watering-down of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy. But they will prove difficult: squabbles over agriculture almost sank the Uruguay round. What does the WTO face（ ）

A:fair trade rules B:free trade C:export tax reduction D:several challenges

Questions from 36 to 40 are based on the following passage: Against this background, the WTO faces several daunting challenges. The first is to continue bringing down tariffs on traded goods. Average penalties have fallen steadily since the GATT’s formation but even the most open economies retain lofty barriers: for instance, America still charges a tariff of 14.6% on import of clothing, five times higher than its average levy. Resistance to tariff cuts is strongest in agriculture. According to Tim Josling, a trade expert at Stanford University, tariffs and other barriers on farm goods average a crippling 40% worldwide and create distortions that “destroy huge amounts of value”. A new set of global farm talks is planned to start in 1999. At the least, you might think, these could lock in impressive reforms in Latin America and encourage further watering-down of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy. But they will prove difficult: squabbles over agriculture almost sank the Uruguay round. The best title for the passage is（ ）.

A:NEW TRADE RULES B:UNFAIR TRADE RULES C:TRADE BARRIERS FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES D:TARIFF CHALLENGES TO WTO