[ti:Amazon Announced Choices for Possible Second Headquarters] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.92]The online seller Amazon has announced a list of 20 possible places [00:07.40]where the company might build a second headquarters. [00:12.18]Included on the list is the city of Toronto in the Canadian Province of Ontario. [00:21.64]Amazon expects the new headquarters, [00:25.04]which Amazon calls "HQ2," to employ 50,000 people. [00:32.60]Amazon estimated that, over the next 10 to 15 years, [00:39.84]"HQ2" will generate jobs that average over $100,000 in yearly pay. [00:50.72]Thursday's announcement comes four months [00:54.48]after the company first started accepting bids. [00:59.84]The list, which was cut down from a total of 238 areas, [01:06.76]includes major cities such as Chicago, New York City and Washington D.C. [01:16.48]Smaller cities such as Raleigh, North Carolina [01:21.05]and Columbus, Ohio were also included. [01:27.24]In the Northeast, Boston; Newark, New Jersey; Philadelphia [01:34.08]and Pittsburg were selected as possible choices. [01:40.00]Montgomery County, Maryland and Northern Virginia; [01:44.53]and the southern cities of Atlanta; Austin and Dallas, Texas; [01:51.16]Nashville, Tennessee; and Miami are up for consideration. [01:59.68]Toronto was the only place chosen outside of the U.S. [02:06.20]Los Angeles was the only city on the West Coast [02:11.64]and Indianapolis was the only city in the Midwest. [02:18.40]Amazon's main headquarters is in Seattle, Washington. [02:25.48]Amazon's announcement marks the beginning of a competition between the bidders. [02:32.08]"HQ2" is expected to bring in billions of dollars [02:38.35]in both revenue and secondary investment. [02:44.12]Amazon's plan for expansion [02:47.83]shows the influence technology companies have on the economy. [02:55.00]On Wednesday, technology company Apple [02:58.64]announced plans to create thousands of jobs and build a new campus. [03:06.80]Some of the competing bidders have publically announced their plans [03:12.54]to provide Amazon with billions of dollars in reduced taxes if they are chosen. [03:22.12]Jason Lary, the mayor of Stonecrest, Georgia, near Atlanta, [03:27.96]has proposed using 140 hectares of land in his town [03:33.72]to create a new city he called Amazon. [03:39.68]Lary said Amazon's chief executive officer, [03:44.08]Jeff Bezos, can be the city's mayor for life. [03:49.36]New Jersey has offered Amazon $7 billion in tax reductions [03:56.84]if Newark is chosen as the future site for "HQ2." [04:02.64]Amazon officials say they expect to make a decision sometime this year. [04:11.48]The company plans to hold discussions with all 20 bidders about the project. [04:21.20]I'm Mario Ritter. [04:22.80]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM