2019年经济学人 美国贸易政策(2)

 

Plans are being hatched but have not yet been executed, he says.

他表示，计划正在酝酿中，但尚未付诸实施。

Plants in Mexico owned by international carmakers have the most changes to make.

国际汽车制造商在墨西哥的工厂要做的改变最多。

The delay is in part because reforging supply chains is a slow and costly¹ affair.

推迟计划的部分原因是，重塑供应链是一件缓慢且代价高昂的事情。

Plants and production lines are planned years in advance. Finding new suppliers requires lengthy² certification processes.

工厂和生产线需要提前几年做计划。寻找新的供应商需要漫长的认证过程。

But politicians also bear some of the blame. Congressional haggling³ over the USMCA means that

但政治家也要承担部分责任。国会对USMCA讨价还价意味着

there is still uncertainty⁴ about whether and when it will come into force.

它是否能以及何时能生效仍然存在不确定性。

And until legislation is passed, the details will remain unclear.

在立法通过之前，细节仍不明朗。

One parts-maker grouses⁵ about "inconsistency in the application and interpretation⁶ of the rules",

一位零件制造商抱怨规则的应用和解释不一致”，

having received a variety of requests for information from different manufacturers,

因为他受到了来自不同制造商的各种信息请求，

each seeking to find out whether a product would be compliant⁷. Such vagueness makes planning even harder.

每一位都想知道某个产品是否可用。这种模糊使得计划更加困难。

Then there are Mr Trump's other traderelated threats: to put further tariffs⁸ on imported components⁹ from China,

然后还有来自特朗普的其他与贸易相关的威胁：对从中国进口的零部件加征关税，

and to slap duties on imported cars and parts from the EU.

以及对从欧盟进口的汽车和零部件征收关税。

Executives have faced up to the fact that tensions with China could be long-lasting, but are struggling to work out how high tariffs could end up.

高管们已经面对这样一个事实：与中国的紧张关系可能会持续很长时间，但他们正在努力弄清楚关税最终能达到多高。

Threatened duties on imported car parts, ostensibly to protect America's national security,

威胁对进口汽车零件征收关税，从表面来看是保护美国国家安全，

have come under such intense criticism that company bosses hope they will never be applied¹⁰.

但它受到了如此强烈的批评，以至于公司老板们希望它们永不被采用。

But Mr Trump's obsession¹¹ with cars is too great for them to bet on it.

但特朗普对汽车的痴迷程度，让他们不敢押注于此。

The president's critics will complain that his meddling¹² in car companies' supply chains comes with costs,

批评总统的人会抱怨说，他干涉汽车公司的供应链是要付出代价的，

and that he is both bringing higher prices for consumers and sapping the competitiveness of America as an export base. All true.

并且他给消费者带来了更高的价格，也削弱了美国作为出口基地的竞争力。说的没错。

But if his chief desire is that more auto¹³ production is done in America than would have been without his measures,

但如果他的主要愿望是希望在没有他的措施下，美国的汽车生产将会增加，

it is too soon to declare that he has failed.

那么现在宣布他失败还为时过早。

1 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

2 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

3 haggling   

v.讨价还价( haggle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I left him in the market haggling over the price of a shirt. 我扔下他自己在市场上就一件衬衫讨价还价。
• Some were haggling loudly with traders as they hawked their wares. 有些人正在大声同兜售货物的商贩讲价钱。 来自辞典例句

4 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

5 grouses   

n.松鸡( grouse的名词复数 )；松鸡肉v.抱怨，发牢骚( grouse的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• If you've got any grouses, you`d better tell me about them. 你若有什麽不满就跟我说。 来自辞典例句
• If you've got any grouses, you'd better tell me about them. 你若有什么不满就跟我说。 来自互联网

6 interpretation   

n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理

参考例句：

• His statement admits of one interpretation only.他的话只有一种解释。
• Analysis and interpretation is a very personal thing.分析与说明是个很主观的事情。

7 compliant   

adj.服从的，顺从的

参考例句：

• I don't respect people who are too compliant.我看不起那种唯命是从，唯唯诺诺的人。
• For years I had tried to be a compliant and dutiful wife.几年来，我努力做一名顺从和尽职尽职的妻子。

8 tariffs   

关税制度； 关税( tariff的名词复数 )； 关税表； （旅馆或饭店等的）收费表； 量刑标准

参考例句：

• British industry was sheltered from foreign competition by protective tariffs. 保护性关税使英国工业免受国际竞争影响。
• The new tariffs have put a stranglehold on trade. 新的关税制对开展贸易极为不利。

9 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

10 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

11 obsession   

n.困扰，无法摆脱的思想(或情感)

参考例句：

• I was suffering from obsession that my career would be ended.那时的我陷入了我的事业有可能就此终止的困扰当中。
• She would try to forget her obsession with Christopher.她会努力忘记对克里斯托弗的迷恋。

12 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

13 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。