Words in the News cool off ralentir syn. cool down Analysts expected the Fed* to raise its key interest rates in December 2015 for the first time since mid-2006 when they were raised to cool off a heated economy and the housing bubble was about to burst. * Federal Reserve (America's Central Bank) cornerstone pierre angulaire Geopolitical strategists view the Trans-Pacific Partnership signed in February 2016 by twelve Pacific rim countries as the economic cornerstone of the Obama administration's drive to refocus America's foreign policy on Asia. corporate bellwether société phare The emissions-tests scandal revealed in September 2015 involving the iconic German brand, VW, came after the denting of the reputation of Germany's two other corporate bellwethers, Siemens and Deutsche Bank. count chef d'inculpation Jurists point out that Edward Snowden will most probably be charged with disclosing classified information under the Espionage Act if he is brought to trial, and that he faces a 10-year jail term for each count. countenance accepter, admettre President Hollande initially refused to countenance the idea of national quotas to take in asylum seekers but backtracked in September 2015 after Germany had taken in more than 500,000 of them. 36