Amazon said it will cut prices on a range of popular goods as it completes its acquisition of Whole Foods, sending shares of riv

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问题    Amazon said it will cut prices on a range of popular goods as it completes its acquisition of Whole Foods, sending shares of rival grocers tumbling(跌倒,暴跌)on fears that brutal market share battles will intensify.
   Amazon’s $ 13. 7 billion purchase of Whole Foods, which will be completed on Monday, has been hanging over a brick-and-mortar(有实体的)retail sector unsure of how to respond to the world’s biggest online retailer. Shares of Kroger, the biggest United States supermarket operator, closed down 8 percent, while Wal-Mart, the biggest US food seller, closed down 2 percent.
   Amazon said it will start selling Whole Foods brand products on its website, a move that sent down shares of packaged food sellers, including Kellogg. Amazon also said members of its $ 99-per-year Prime shopping club would eventually be rolled into Whole Foods’ customer rewards program and be eligible for special offers and discounts. " There was never any doubt that Amazon would lower prices, and even offer further discounts in-store to Prime members," said Baird Equity Research analyst Colin Sebastian.
   Starting on Monday, Amazon will cut prices on organic grocery staples such as bananas, avocados, brown eggs, farmed salmon and tilapia, baby kale and lettuce, some apples, butter, and other products. Lowering prices could stem defections by price-sensitive Whole Foods shoppers and help the grocer shed its "Whole Paycheck" reputation for high prices that are generally 15 to 25 percent above rivals. It could also bring in new consumers who can then be urged to shop for food and other products online.
   The planned price cuts would have been a tough sell to Whole Foods’ investors, who had grown used to fat profits from the upscale chain, but are more in line with Amazon’s broader strategy of sacrificing short-term profit for long-term market dominance. Amazon’s willingness to take lower profit margins ups the ante(赌注)in the increasingly costly grocery price war.
   Adding Whole Foods benefits should help Amazon attract more shoppers to its successful Prime scheme, which features two-day shipping for eligible purchases and unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows. Amazon has more than 60 million Prime members, according to analyst estimates. Whole Foods has rolled out a loyalty program at its smaller, lower-priced 365 by Whole Foods chain, which offers members 10 percent off more than 100 items in the stores. The program is still being tested in the main Whole Foods chain.
   Beyond that, some Whole Foods stores will get Amazon Lockers, where customers can receive online orders and make returns. John Mackey will remain chief executive of Whole Foods and the company will operate as a subsidiary and continue to be headquartered in Austin, Texas, the companies said on Thursday.
What may be the impact of the price cutting policy of Amazon?

选项 A、Causing defections of shoppers.
B、Starting a new round of price wars.
C、Increasing Amazon’s annual sales.
D、Attracting more target customers.

答案D

解析 推理判断题。本题考查亚马逊降价政策的影响。定位段最后两句指出,亚马逊的降价政策可以帮助其摆脱原先高价位的名声,这样还可能会吸引一些之后在线采购食品和其他产品的新客户,可见降价举措的影响之一是吸引更多的目标客户,故答案为D)。A)“导致买家叛离”与原文定位段第二句的意思相反,原文的意思是降价可以防止买家叛离,故排除;B)“引发新一轮的价格战”在原文中没有依据,故排除;C)“增加亚马逊的年度销售额”,第五段明确指出降价虽然可能对长期市场主动权有利,但是会影响短期内的利润空间,可见此举并不一定会增加亚马逊的年度销售额,故排除。
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