经济学人:巨无霸汉堡指数 强大的美元

 　　Finance and Economics

　　财经

　　The Big Mac Index: The All Meaty Dollar

　　巨无霸汉堡指数：强大的美元

　　Burgernomics gets to grips with a strong greenback.

　　汉堡经济学发现美元走强。

　　IT is perhaps not surprising that the worst-performing major currency in the world this year is the Turkish lira.

　　或许毫无意外，今年全世界表现最差的货币就是土耳其里拉。

　　巨无霸指数强大的美元.png

　　Many emerging-market currencies have taken a battering¹ since the election in November of Donald Trump² raised expectations of faster monetary³ tightening⁴ in America and sent the dollar soaring.

　　由于特朗普去年11月份当选美国总统提振了收紧美国货币政策和美元走强的预期，许多新兴市场的货币遭受重创。

　　But the lira has many other troubles to contend with, too: terrorist bombings, an economic slowdown, alarm over plans by the president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to strengthen his powers, and a central bank reluctant to raise interest rates to defend the currency.

　　但是里拉也有许多其他的问题要应对：轰炸恐怖势力，经济衰退，对总统雷杰普·塔伊普·埃尔多安为了巩固政权提出的计划造成的恐慌，同时中央银行不愿意提高利率而保护币值。

　　It has plunged⁵ to record lows.

　　里拉已经降至历史低点。

　　According to the Big Mac index, our patty-powered currency guide, it is now undervalued by 45.7% against the dollar.

　　巨无霸汉堡指数是我们基于馅饼的货币指导，根据这项指数，里拉如今兑美元的价值被低估45.7%。

　　The Big Mac index is built on the idea of purchasing-power parity⁶, the theory that in the long run currencies will converge⁷ until the same amount of money buys the same amount of goods and services in every country.

　　巨无霸汉堡指数的建立基于购买力平价的思想，该理论认为在长期中，各种货币价值会汇集于一点，直到相同数量的货币能在每个国家购买相同数量的商品和服务。

　　A Big Mac currently costs $5.06 in America but just 10.75 lira ($2.75) in Turkey, implying that the lira is undervalued.

　　要制作一个巨无霸汉堡，在美国花费5.06美元，而在土耳其花费10.75里拉（2.75美元），这表明里拉价值被低估。

　　However, other currencies are even cheaper.

　　然而，其他货币的价值更为低廉。

　　In Big Mac terms, the Mexican peso is undervalued by a whacking⁸ 55.9% against the greenback.

　　根据巨无霸汉堡的角度看，墨西哥比索兑美元比率竟被低估55.9%之巨。

　　This week it also plumbed⁹ a record low as Mr Trump reiterated¹⁰ some of his campaign threats against Mexico.

　　本周，随着特朗普重申他竞选过程中对墨西哥的一些威胁言论，比索下降至历史低点。

　　The peso has lost a tenth of its value against the dollar since November.

　　自11月以来，墨西哥比索兑美元汇价损失了十分之一。

　　Of big countries, only Russia offers a cheaper Big Mac, in dollar terms, even though the rouble has strengthened over the past year.

　　以美元来看，在各大国中，唯独俄罗斯的巨无霸汉堡便宜的多，即便俄罗斯货币卢布在过去这一年中一直在增值。

　　The euro zone is also prey¹¹ to political uncertainty¹².

　　欧元区也饱受政局风波之苦。

　　Elections are scheduled this year in the Netherlands, France and Germany, and possible in Italy.

　　今年，荷兰、法国、德国甚至可能连意大利的大选都被提上议程。

　　The euro recently fell to its lowest level since 2003.

　　欧元近来跌至自2003年来的最低水平。

　　Britain’s Brexit vote has had an even bigger effect on the pound, which has fallen to $1.21, a 31-year low.

　　英国的脱欧公投已给英镑带来的影响甚至更大，英镑已经跌至1.21美元，是31年来的最低水平。

　　According to the Big Mac index, the euro and the pound are undervalued against the dollar by 19.7% and 26.3%, respectively.

　　根据巨无霸汉堡指数，欧元和英镑兑美元汇率各被低估19.7%和26.3%。

　　One of the drawbacks of the Big Mac index is that it takes no account of labour costs.

　　巨无霸汉堡指数的缺陷之一是没有考虑劳动力成本。

　　It should surprise no one that a Big Mac costs less in Shanghai than it does in San Francisco, since Chinese workers earn far less than their American counterparts.

　　如果说一个上海的巨无霸汉堡成本低于旧金山的，应该也不会令人意外，因为中国劳工收入远远低于他们在美国的同行们。

　　So in a slightly more sophisticated version of the Big Mac index, we take account of a country’s average income.

　　因此，在稍微复杂一些的巨无霸汉堡指数中，我们考虑了一国的平均收入。

　　Historically, this adjustment has tended to raise currencies’ valuations against the dollar, so emerging-market currencies tend to look more reasonably priced.

　　从历史上来看，这种调整意在提高货币兑美元的估价，因此新兴货币的价格看起来会更加合理。

　　The Chinese yuan, for example, is 44% undervalued against the dollar according to our baseline Big Mac index, but only 7% according to the adjusted one.

　　以中国的人民币为例，根据我们的基线巨无霸汉堡指数，兑美元的汇率被低估44%，但是根据调整后的指数计算，仅被低估7%。

　　The deluxe¹³ Big Mac index has typically made rich-world currencies look more expensive.

　　豪华版的巨无霸汉堡指数通常使得富裕国家货币显得更高昂。

　　Because western Europeans have higher costs of living and lower incomes than Americans, the euro has traded at around a 25% premium¹⁴ against the dollar in income-adjusted burger terms since the euro’s inception¹⁵.

　　但是，因为西欧居民相比美国居民的生活成本更高、收入更低，所以以收入调整的汉堡指数来看，自欧元启动以来，欧元对美元的兑换比率存在大约25%的溢价。

　　But what once seemed to be an immutable¹⁶ axiom of burgernomics is true no longer.

　　但是过去一直被认为是真理的汉堡经济原理不再一定正确了。

　　So strong is the dollar that even the adjusted Big Mac index finds the euro undervalued.

　　美元如此强势以至于用调整后的巨无霸汉堡指数都得出欧元低估的结论。

　　The dollar is now trading at a 14-year high in trade-weighted terms.

　　以贸易加权的角度看，美元汇率现在正处在十四年来的高点。

　　Emerging-world economies may struggle to pay off dollar-denominated debts.

　　新兴世界经济体也许将艰难地支付美元标价的债务。

　　American firms may find themselves at a disadvantage against foreign competition.

　　美国企业或许将发觉自己面对外国竞争处于不利地位。

　　And American tourists will get more burgers for their buck¹⁷ in Europe.

　　同时，美国游客将可以用他们的美元在欧洲买到更多的汉堡包。

　　1.contend with 与...作斗争

　　例句:We have had to contend with the disinterest of much of the medical profession about this topic.

　　我们必须全力对付很多医疗界人士对这一话题的冷漠。

　　2.pay off 偿还

　　例句:It would take him the rest of his life to pay off that loan.

　　他得用余生来还清那笔贷款。

　　3.no longer 不再

　　例句:When a thing has been used, it is no longer new.

　　当一件东西被用过后，就不再是新的了。

　　4.tend to 倾向于

　　例句:We tend to think in absolutes.

　　我们思考问题倾向于绝对化。

1 battering   

n.用坏，损坏v.连续猛击( batter的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The film took a battering from critics in the US. 该影片在美国遭遇到批评家的猛烈抨击。
• He kept battering away at the door. 他接连不断地砸门。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

4 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

5 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

6 parity   

n.平价，等价，比价，对等

参考例句：

• The two currencies have now reached parity.这两种货币现已达到同等价值。
• Women have yet to achieve wage or occupational parity in many fields.女性在很多领域还没能争取到薪金、职位方面的平等。

7 converge   

vi.会合；聚集，集中；(思想、观点等)趋近

参考例句：

• The results converge towards this truth.其结果趋近于这个真理。
• Parallel lines converge at infinity.平行线永不相交。

8 whacking   

adj.（用于强调）巨大的v.重击，使劲打( whack的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• a whacking great hole in the roof 房顶上一个巨大的窟窿
• His father found him a cushy job in the office, with almost nothing to do and a whacking great salary. 他父亲给他在事务所找到了一份轻松舒适的工作，几乎什么都不用做，工资还极高。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 plumbed   

v.经历( plumb的过去式和过去分词 )；探究；用铅垂线校正；用铅锤测量

参考例句：

• Magda had plumbed her own heart for answers. 玛格达在自己心中搜寻答案。 来自辞典例句
• In the sub-zero weather, their exhausts plumbed white in the grey streets. 在严寒天气，他们的排气管在灰色的街道上吐着缕缕白烟。 来自辞典例句

10 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

11 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

12 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。

13 deluxe   

adj.华美的，豪华的，高级的

参考例句：

• This system puts the top hotels in a special deluxe category.这种分类法把最高级的旅馆列为特殊豪华级。
• I liked the deluxe edition,but I could afford only a second best.我喜欢精装版，但我只买得起一本稍差一点的。

14 premium   

n.加付款；赠品；adj.高级的；售价高的

参考例句：

• You have to pay a premium for express delivery.寄快递你得付额外费用。
• Fresh water was at a premium after the reservoir was contaminated.在水库被污染之后，清水便因稀而贵了。

15 inception   

n.开端，开始，取得学位

参考例句：

• The programme has been successful since its inception.这个方案自开始实施以来一直卓有成效。
• Julia's worked for that company from its inception.自从那家公司开办以来，朱莉娅一直在那儿工作。

16 immutable   

adj.不可改变的，永恒的

参考例句：

• Nothing in the world is immutable.世界没有一成不变的东西。
• They free our minds from considering our world as fixed and immutable.它们改变着人们将世界看作是永恒不变的观点。

17 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。