经济学人:周期轮回:下一场金融危机或被央行触发(1)

 　　Finance and Economics 财经

　　Buttonwood: When the cycle turns 梧桐树专栏：周期轮回

　　The next financial crisis may be triggered by central banks. 下一场金融危机或被央行触发。

　　As with London buses, don't worry if you miss a financial crisis; another will be along shortly. 如同伦敦公交车一样，如果错过了一场金融危机，别担心；下一场很快就会来。

　　The latest study on long-term asset returns from Deutsche Bank shows that crises in developed markets have become much more common in recent decades. 来自德意志银行的有关长期资产回报的最新研究表明，在发达国家，危机在近几十年中已经变得越来越常见了。

　　That does not bode¹ well. 这不是好兆头。

　　Deutsche defines a crisis as a period when a country suffers one of the following: a 15% annual decline in equities;  德意志银行把危机定义为国家遭受下列情况之一时的一段时间：股票15%的年化下跌；

　　a 10% fall in its currency or its government bonds; a default on its national debt; or a period of double-digit inflation. 货币或政府债券10%的下跌；国家债务违约；或者是一段两位数的通胀时期。

　　During the 19th century, only occasionally did more than half of countries for which there are data suffer such a shock in a single year. 19世纪期间，只有偶尔超过半数的有数据的国家在单独一年中遭受一次这样的冲击。

　　But since the 1980s, in numerous years more than half of them have been in a financial crisis of some kind. 但是，自上世纪80年代以来，在很多年中，这些国家中的一半以上都处于某种金融危机之中。

　　The main reason for this, argues Deutsche, is the monetary² system. 德意志银行指出，这方面的罪魁祸首是货币体系。

　　Under the gold standard and its successor, the Bretton Woods system of fixed³ exchange rates, the amount of credit creation was limited. 在金本位制及其后续者——布雷顿森林体系的固定汇率之下，信用创造的总量是有限的。

　　A country that expanded its money supply too quickly would suffer a trade deficit⁴ and pressure on its currency's exchange rate;  太快地扩张了货币供给的国家会遭受贸易赤字之苦以及对其货币汇率的压力；

　　the government would react by slamming on the monetary brakes. 政府会应之以货币政策的急刹车。

　　The result was that it was harder for financial bubbles to inflate⁵. 结果是，金融泡沫越来越难膨胀。

　　But since the early 1970s more countries have moved to a floating exchange-rate system. 但是，自上世纪70年代初以来，更多的国家转向了浮动汇率体系。

　　This gives governments the flexibility⁶ to deal with an economic crisis, and means they do not have to subordinate other policy goals to maintaining a currency peg⁷. 这赋予政府应对经济危机的灵活性，而且还意味着他们不必为了维持货币挂钩而屈从于其他政策目标。

　　It has also created a trend towards greater trade imbalances, which no longer constrain⁸ policymakers—the currency is often allowed to take the strain. 它还造成了一种走向更大的贸易不平衡的趋势，这种趋势不再去束缚决策者——货币经常受命来承担这种扭曲。

　　Similarly, government debt has risen steadily⁹ as a proportion of GDP since the mid-1970s. 同样地，作为GDP的一部分的政府债务自上世纪70年代中期以来一直在稳步上升。

　　There has been little pressure from the markets to balance the budget; Japan has had a deficit every year since 1966, and France since 1993. 很少有来自市场以平衡预算的压力；自1966年以来，日本年年赤字。自1993年以来，法国也是如此。

　　Italy has managed just one year of surplus since 1950. 自1950年以来，意大利用尽浑身解数，才只有一年盈余。

　　In the developed world, consumers and companies have also taken on more debt. 在发达国家，消费者和公司也背上了更多债务。

　　The result has been a cycle of credit expansion and collapse¹⁰. 结果是一轮债务扩张和破灭的周期。

1 bode   

v.预示

参考例句：

• These figures do not bode well for the company's future.这些数字显示出公司的前景不妙。
• His careful habits bode well for his future.他那认真的习惯预示著他会有好的前途。

2 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。

3 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

4 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

5 inflate   

vt.使膨胀，使骄傲，抬高（物价）

参考例句：

• The buyers bid against each other and often inflate the prices they pay.买主们竞相投标，往往人为地提高价钱。
• Stuart jumped into the sea and inflated the liferaft.斯图尔特跳到海里给救生艇充气。

6 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

7 peg   

n.木栓，木钉；vt.用木钉钉，用短桩固定

参考例句：

• Hang your overcoat on the peg in the hall.把你的大衣挂在门厅的挂衣钩上。
• He hit the peg mightily on the top with a mallet.他用木槌猛敲木栓顶。

8 constrain   

vt.限制，约束；克制，抑制

参考例句：

• She tried to constrain herself from a cough in class.上课时她竭力忍住不咳嗽。
• The study will examine the factors which constrain local economic growth.这项研究将考查抑制当地经济发展的因素。

9 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

10 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。