【題組】
The global aviation industry last year went against forecasts of a slowdown with Boeing recording an all-time high of 1,413 net orders. Boeing, which has won more than 1,000 orders three years in a row, also delivered 441 planes, reaching a six-year high. The US manufacturer's success in recovering from the slowdowns of the early part of the decade puts pressure on its European rival, Airbus.
By the end of November 2007, Airbus had booked 1,204 orders and delivered 410 planes, suggesting it could fall behind Boeing in orders for a second year. But some analysts expect Airbus, which has been weakened by the rising euro and forced to offer large amount of discounts, to claim it won more orders than its rival.
The industry has been growing since the slowdown caused by the terrorist attacks of September 11 2001, with growth supported by huge demand from Asia and the Gulf states. But some experts believe that orders this year will be cut in half, with US airlines putting off plans to renew their ageing planes in the face of a possible recession and soaring fuel prices. Boeing's head of commercial airplanes, Scott Carson, said: "2007 told us that global demand for commercial airplanes remains strong and sustained."
Airbus is, like Boeing, speeding up production schedules in an effort to meet demand. The manufacturer, which last month sold several plants as part of a €2bn (￡1.5bn) cost-savings plan, is losing 10,000 jobs and is expected to bring out a revised plan because of the euro's continuing strength against the dollar. It is shifting production out of Europe to low-cost countries in the dollar zone. Airbus has already said it will build a plant in China to build A320 single-aisle jets and has suggested it could build more than half of each new plane overseas. 【題組】80.How will Airbus solve its problem?
(A) To buy old plants in Europe and build new ones in Asia
(B) To lay off more employees of the plants in Europe
(C) To build new plants outside European countries
(D) To sell the old plants in Europe for cash
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