"Welcome to the U. S. A.! Major Credit cards accepted!" By the millions they are coming -- no longer the tired, the poor, the wretched masses longing for a better living. These are the wealthy. "We don’’t have a budget, "says a biologist from Brazil, as she walks with two companions through New York City’’s South Street. "We just use our credit cards." The U.S. has long been one of the world’’s most popular tourist destinations, but this year has been exceptional. First there was the World Cup, which drew thousands from every comer of the globe; then came the weakening of the U.S. dollar against major currencies. NOW the U. S. , still the world’’s superpower, can also claim to be the world’’s bargain basement (廉价商品部). Nobody undersells America these days on just about everything, from consumer electronics to fashion clothes to tennis rackets. Bottom retail prices -- anywhere from 30% to 70% lower than those in Europe and Asia -- have attracted some 47 million visitors, who are expected to leave behind $ 79 billion in 1994. That’’s up from $ 74 billion the year before. True, not everyone comes just for bargains. There remains an undeniable fascination in the rest of the world with all things American, nourished by Hollywood films and U.S. television series. But shopping in the U. S. A. is proving irresistible. Every week thousands arrive with empty suitcases ready to be filled; some even rent an additional hotel room to hold their purchases. The buying binge (无节制) has become as important as watching Old Faithful Fountains erupt in Yellowstone Park or sunbathing on a beach in Florida. The U.S. has come at last to appreciate what other countries learned long ago: the pouring in of foreign tourists may not always be convenient, but it does put money in the bank. And with a trade deficit at about $130 billion and growing for the past 12 months, the U. S. needs all the deposits it can get. Compared with American tourists abroad, visitors to the U.S. stay longer and spend more money at each stop; an average of 12.2 night and $1624 a traveller versus the Americans’’ four nights and $ 298. The reason why 1994 was exceptional is that _______.