Questions 6-10 are based on Passage Two.
6. According to the passage, one may expect that young people graduate with a debt may ______.
A. be looked down upon by others B. never be able to get rid of it
C. avoid starting a family very early D. not have to repay all their debts
7. Which of the following is NOT true about student loans?
A. Higher tuition fees give rise to student loan.
B. Students from well-off families don't borrow money.
C. Higher borrowing limits allow students to loan more money.
D. It may take quite a long time for graduates to repay their debts.
8. Groups representing students, parents and college officials appealed to the government to ______.
A. raise graduates' pay at work
B. provide more loan options for students
C. cut down the amount that students have to repay
D. allow graduates to gradually increase their repayment
9. The passage is a(n) ______.
A. statement of facts B. argument against high student loans
C. comment on a controversial issue D. suggestion about student loans
10. Which can be the best title for the passage?
A. Costly Education, Heavier Burden
B. Fresh out of College, and in Debt
C. Efforts to Finance College Education
D. Graduates Expect Lower Repayment
Passage Three
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, oil prices broke the record of $76.70 a barrel set just Thursday. The new price of oil for delivery in August shot to $77.95 before finishing the day at $77.03.
While $80-a-barrel oil seemed like a skeptic's worst-case outlook a few months ago, oil traders are increasingly saying that it is now just a matter of time before prices cross that threshold. Oil futures contracts for delivery beyond this summer passed $80 a barrel for the first time on Thursday.
"The feeling is that we're in a fairly bullish market right now," said Antoine Halff, head of research at Fimat. "Gasoline demand over the last few weeks has been very robust. Perhaps the bigger issue on top of that is geopolitics. And clearly the market is very jittery about what's going on in Israel." Oil markets are typically sensitive to any political instability in the Middle East. Recently, they have been unsettled by Israeli military incursions into Gaza and then, this week, Lebanon. So, a market already worried about the potential for conflict with Iran and North Korea over their nuclear programs is growing even more anxious. William Rhodes, chief investment strategist at Rhodes Analytics, said, "People are scared, that's the bottom line."
The Commerce Department said that retail sales fell by 0.1 percent in June, seasonally adjusted, the first drop since February. A University of Michigan survey that showed falling consumer confidence was one of the reasons.
How resilient consumer spending proves to be is something that will continue to factor heavily into stock performance. Most economists believe that consumers will curb their spending somewhat as the year goes on, and economic growth is expected to slow. But there is disagreement over how much spending will slow.
