1·It was hardly necessary to be given money by Exxon to see what was dubious about those inquiries.
花钱弄明白那些调查中是不是有疑点，这对于埃克森来说几乎没什么价值。
2·Exxon's shareholders were less giddy, perhaps reflecting on the pitfalls of doing business in Russia.
埃克森的股东则没那么兴奋，也许是因为在俄国做生意的诸多陷阱。
3·Last year it bought Exxon Mobil's distribution and retailing business in Brazil to help it sell its ethanol.
去年它收购了埃克森美孚石油在巴西的分销和零售业务，以协助其销售乙醇。
4·Exxon Mobil and BP saw profit fall by around half; at Shell it was down by 70%.
埃克森美孚和英国石油公司利润下滑了约一半；壳牌利润暴跌了70%。
5·But American oil firms are a different matter: as Exxon has shown, so long as you sit on colossal oil reserves, they will always be happy to do business.
但美国的石油公司则是另外一码事了：正如埃克森所表现的，只要你坐拥庞大的石油资源，他们就会一直乐意同你做生意。