問：假如你貸款1000美元，利率是20%，一年你應(yīng)該付多少利息？

答案是200美元。答錯了也沒關(guān)系，弄不清的不只你一個。新近一項(xiàng)研究顯示，將近三分之二的美國人都算不好利息，約三分之一的人甚至不知道怎么算。

近日新發(fā)布的一項(xiàng)調(diào)研結(jié)果中估計(jì)，將近三分之二美國人的基本理財(cái)知識測試不過關(guān)，說明他們在五道測試題中答對的題目不超過四題。更糟的是，自金融危機(jī)以來，測試合格者占比持續(xù)下降，從2009年的42%降至去年的37%。

以上發(fā)現(xiàn)來自FINRA基金會的全國理財(cái)能力研究，共調(diào)查了27,564名美國人，歷時從去年6月到同年9月。FINRA是證券經(jīng)紀(jì)人和華爾街銀行的半官方監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)。

債券是調(diào)查對象了解最少的領(lǐng)域。只有28%的受訪者知道，債券的收益率下跌時價格如何變化（價格上漲）。能回答簡單財(cái)務(wù)風(fēng)險問題的受訪人不足一半。

除了理財(cái)常識，研究還發(fā)現(xiàn)，許多美國人已經(jīng)從金融危機(jī)的打擊中恢復(fù)元?dú)狻１硎久吭轮Ц堕_銷毫無困難的受訪者占比增長12個百分點(diǎn)，由2009年的36%增至去年的48%。準(zhǔn)備了應(yīng)急資金的受訪者占比由35%增至46%。此外，研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，半數(shù)以上使用信用卡的受訪者自稱每月付清帳單，占比為開展此項(xiàng)調(diào)查以來最高。

然而，研究還顯示，盡管金融危機(jī)已過去八年，仍有相當(dāng)一部分人——包括不少非裔、西班牙裔、女性、2000年左右成年的所謂“千禧一代”和高中以下學(xué)歷的人經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況不如經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退以前。

女性更有可能因?yàn)榛ㄙM(fèi)高推遲接受醫(yī)療服務(wù)，比如看醫(yī)生、購買處方藥或者接受治療。研究顯示，超過五分之一，即21%的美國人未能償還醫(yī)療債務(wù)。

少數(shù)族裔方面，39%的非裔美國人和34%的拉丁裔通過當(dāng)鋪、發(fā)薪日短貸等高成本方式融資，采用同類方式借款的白人和亞裔占比為21%。

和前輩不同，29%的千禧一代——18到34歲美國人表示有拖欠房貸的情況。35歲到45歲拖欠房貸的有16%。45%的無大學(xué)學(xué)歷受訪者稱，一旦發(fā)生緊急情況需要一個月內(nèi)拿出2000美元，他們做不到。

“這項(xiàng)研究凸顯了以創(chuàng)新方式提高消費(fèi)者常識的需求很大，要提供必要的工具和教育切實(shí)幫助他們，”FINRA基金會主席理查德·凱徹姆在一份新聞稿中表示，“我希望決策者、研究者和擁護(hù)者運(yùn)用研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，想清楚如何用最合適的方式服務(wù)理財(cái)知識匱乏的人們?！?

雖然美國經(jīng)濟(jì)自大蕭條以來已整體反彈，但德意志銀行認(rèn)為，美國重陷衰退的幾率仍有60%，部分原因是長期和短期債券的息差一直在收窄。

在女性就業(yè)方面，《財(cái)富》此前報道稱，盡管隨著女性就業(yè)者增多，失業(yè)率有所下降，但女性失業(yè)者人數(shù)整體還是超過了經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退前幾個月的水平。（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

譯者：Pessy

審校:夏林

Quick: If you take out a $1000 loan that has a 20% rate, how much will you owe a year in interest?

Answer: $200. But if you got that wrong, you’re not alone. Nearly two thirds of Americans can’t calculate interest payments correctly, according to a new study. About a third said they didn’t even know how.

All told, a new study, which was released today, estimated that nearly two-thirds of Americans couldn’t pass a basic financial literacy test, meaning they got fewer than four answers correct on a five-question quiz. Worse, the percentage of those who can pass the test has fallen consistently since the financial crisis to 37% last year, from 42% in 2009.

These findings come from the National Capability Study by the FINRA Foundation, which surveyed 27,564 Americans, from June through October of last year. FINRA is a quasi-government organization that regulates brokers and Wall Street.

Bonds presented one of the biggest problems for respondents of the survey. Just 28% knew what happens to bond prices when interest rates fall. (They rise.) And less than half of all Americans appear to be able to answer basic questions about financial risk.

Beyond financial literacy, the study found that many Americans have recovered from the financial crisis. Respondents to the survey who reported no difficulty in covering monthly expenses and bills increased 12 percentage points, to 48% in 2015 from 36% in 2009. The percentage of respondents with emergency funds has increased to 46% from 35% in the same years. Additionally, more than half of those using credit cards reported that they pay off their balance each month—the highest percentage since the survey began, the study found.

However, the study also showed that even eight years after the financial crisis, significant segments of the population, including African-Americans, Hispanics, women, Millennials, and people lacking a high school education—so a lot of people—are still worse off then before the recession.

Women are more likely to put off medical services like seeing a doctor, buying prescriptions, or undergoing a medical procedure due to cost. This leaves more than one in five Americans, or 21%, with unpaid medical debt, according to the study.

As for minorities, 39% of blacks and 34% of Latinos have used such high-cost forms of borrowing as pawn shops and payday loans, compared with 21% of whites and 21% of Asians.

And unlike their predecessors, 29% of Millennials, who are 18 to 34, said they had been tardy paying their mortgage, vs. 16% of those ages 35 to 54. And 45% of all respondents with no college education said that if they had an emergency requiring them to pull together $2,000 within a month, they wouldn’t be able to do so.

“This research underscores the critical need for innovative strategies to equip consumers with the tools and education required to effectively manage their financial lives,” said FINRA Foundation Chairman Richard Ketchum in a press release. “My hope is that policymakers, researchers, and advocates will use these findings to make more informed decisions about how to best reach underserved populations.”

Despite the overall rebound from the Great Recession, Deutsche Bank -1.06% says there’s a 60% chance the U.S. is headed back into a recession, partly due to the fact that the difference between yields for long-term and short-term bonds has been shrinking.

As for women, Fortune previously reported that although the increase in the number of women employed has pushed down the female unemployment rate, joblessness among women overall is higher than what it was in the months leading up to the downturn.