With U.S. companies sitting on an estimated $1.8 trillion in cash, it raises the question: Why aren’t they deploying more of their hoard to expand their businesses Or one might channel John Maynard Keynes to ask: Where have the "animal spirits" gone Although capital spending in the U.S. is up 12 percent since the lows of early 2009, it’s still running $88 billion below the peak of $1.34 trillion reached in the first quarter of 2008, says Joseph LaVorgna, chief U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank. He doesn’t expect capital spending to catch up to that peak level and officially start to expand until the second quarter of 2011. (LaVorgna’s definition of capital spending includes physical equipment and software, but not structures such as new stores or manufacturing plants. Spending on structures is about 2 percent of gross domestic product, one-third the size of capital sending’s contribution to GDP, he says.)
"The trend and momentum have definitely turned and it’s just a matter of time before you see other companies give way to capital spending, and eventually that will result in hiring," says LaVorgna. But with spending running $88 billion below peak, he says employment "should be farther along than it is." Companies that have built up a lot of cash are starting to take some chances such as expanding into new markets, which requires hiring new workers, says John Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, an employment consulting firm. U.S. companies have announced the hiring of 118,209 new employees through August, according to data collected by the firm.
So who’s stepping up to the plate Some companies refuse to be cowed and are taking big, if calculated, chances, including ambitious capital projects, hiring new workers, and expanded investment in research and development, according to growth-oriented mutual fund managers contacted by Businessweek.com. If there’s a common denominator, it’s a perceived opportunity and confidence in sustainable demand, whether due to new trends in technology or to new markets that need certain products. Other names came from a list of the top-hiring U.S. companies through July 2010 compiled by Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
"We don’t spend capital unless we have a new contract to supply oxygen, nitrogen, or hydrogen to our customers," says James Sawyer, Praxair’s chief financial officer. "Those are 15-year contracts with minimal take-or-pay clauses written into them, which ensure we will get a good return on our capital investment, regardless of how the rest of the economy is doing."
Some younger outfits with entrepreneurial managers who have lived through a few business cycles think their companies may be able to steal a march on competitors more reluctant to spend, says Aram Green, manager of Clear Bridge Advisors Small Cap Growth Fund. "There’s clearly been a decision by management that ’This is not the time to take our foot off the accelerator. In fact, it’s time to push harder and further distance our product from the competition.’\
Which of the following could best summarize the passage ？（）
A.Capital spending will result in hiring.
B.New stores or manufacturing plants come up.
C.How can companies benefit from capital spending.
D.Companies give way to capital spending.
参考答案：D
解析：
[试题类型] 主旨要义题。
[解题思路] 本题考查考生对于全文主旨大意的把握，因此要纵观全文，了解文章的行文脉络。本文首先指出，美国企业的大量闲置资金没有充分用于资本投资，但形势正在发生变化，许多有资本积累的公司纷纷进行投资，扩大业务。然后作者简单介绍了企业的资本投资及其风险控制，最后指出，许多企业已经认识到了资本投资对于公司的意义，即可以通过资本投资先发制人从而超过竞争对手，占领市场。由此可见，全文都是围绕企业开展资本投资展开论述的，故正确选项为[D]。
[干扰排除] 选项[A]只是第二段中提到的资本投资会带来的一个好处，不足以概括全文，故排除。选项[B]是第一段中提到的LaVorgna对于资本投资的理解，不具概括性，故排除。文中只是提到了“企业可以从资本投资中获益”，但并没有说明如何获益，因此选项[C]无法准确概括全文内容，故排除。