商务英语口语对话:Delivering Bad News 传递坏消息

A: I got an email from our supplier yesterday about this quarter's order.... It doesn't look so good. Here, take a look.

B: "Dear Mr. Hardy, I am sorry to inform you that your shipment will be delayed. Due to circumstances beyond our control, our warehouse has been temporarily closed. There has been a problem with fire hazard violations in our industry and government officials have closed several warehouses without warning." Wow, that's bummer.

A: So that means that we'll be late in getting our order....

B: Did they say how long we have to wait until the order is filled?

A: Keep reading....

B: "We deeply regret any inconvenience this has caused you. We apologize for this unexpected delay in the shipment of your order. We can assure you that this will not happen again. We expect normal shipment service to resume soon. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help in the meantime. Sincerely." Looks like they don't have a date for us when the order can be filled.

A: They say "soon", but who knows how soon "soon" will be.