2023年经济学人 字节跳动开启新一轮股票回购

字节跳动开启新一轮股票回购

The world this week--Business

本周国际要闻--商业

ByteDance has offered to buy back stock from investors¹, according to reports, in a proposal that values the owner of the TikTok and Douyin platforms somewhere between 260bn dollars and 268bn dollars.

据报道，字节跳动提出从投资者手中回购股票，该提议对TikTok和抖音平台的所有者字节跳动的估值在2600亿美元至2680亿美元之间。

That is about 10% less than what the firm was reportedly worth a year ago in a separate buy-back plan. 这比该公司一年前在另一项回购股票计划中的估值低了约10%。

ByteDance is still the world’s most valuable startup and one of the most valuable firms in China. 字节跳动仍是世界上最有价值的初创公司，也是中国最有价值的公司之一。

It has toyed with listing on the Hong Kong stockmarket several times.

字节跳动还曾开玩笑似地多次在香港港股上市。

Meanwhile, a federal judge imposed an injunction against Montana’s statewide ban on TikTok. 与此同时，一名联邦法官实施了一项禁令，禁止蒙大拿州对TikTok实施全州禁令。

The ban was supposed to come into force in January, but the judge found that Montana was focused on “targeting China’s ostensible² role in TikTok”, and that foreign policy “is not an important Montana state interest”. 这项禁令本应于明年1月生效，但这位法官裁决，蒙大拿州的重点是“针对中国在TikTok上的表面作用”，而外交政策“不是蒙大拿州的重要利益”。

The ban had been challenged by TikTok and free-speech advocates. TikTok和言论自由倡导者曾对这一禁令提出质疑。

Montana described the injunction as “a preliminary matter” in an ongoing³ process in which it would present “a complete legal argument” to the court. 蒙大拿州将这项禁令描述为正在进行的程序中的“初步事项”。在这个程序中，该州将会向法院提出“完整的法律论据”。

China has started operating the world’s first “fourth-generation” nuclear reactor⁴, according to state media.

据官方媒体报道，中国已开始运营世界首座“第四代”核反应堆。

The coastal⁵ plant in China’s Shandong province generates power through a HTR-PM high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor, based on a modular design. 这座位于中国山东省的沿海核电站基于模块化设计，通过HTR-PM高温气冷堆发电。

Over the past ten years China has added 37 nuclear reactors⁶ to its energy mix (America has added two) and is aiming to install between another six and eight a year.

在过去的十年里，中国在其能源结构中增加了37个核反应堆(美国增加了2个)，中国还计划每年再安装6到8个。

British American Tobacco said it would take an impairment charge of around 25bn pounds (31.5bn dollars), as it writes down the carry value of its cigarette assets over the next 30 years. 英美烟草公司宣布将计提约250亿英镑(合315亿美元)的减值损失，该公司将在未来30年减记其卷烟资产的账面价值。

The company, which counts Dunhill, Kent and Lucky Strike among its brands, aims to get half its revenue from smokeless products by 2035.

包括登喜路(Dunhill)、肯特(Kent)和好彩(Lucky Strike)在内都是这家公司的旗下品牌，其目标是到2035年无烟产品占其总收入的一半。

Procter & Gamble also booked an impairment charge, on the value of Gillette, which it acquired almost two decades ago. 宝洁公司也减计了其近20年前收购的公司吉列的价值。

The conglomerate⁷ is writing off 1.3bn dollars from the male shaving-and-grooming business in the current quarter, which comes on top of the 8bn dollars it wrote down in 2019.

该集团将在本季度从男性剃须和美容业务中减记13亿美元，此前该集团在2019年减记了80亿美元。

Gillette has struggled to compete against razor-sharp marketing⁸ from upstarts such as Dollar Shave Club and Harry’s.

吉列一直难以与Dollar Shave Club和Harry’s等后起之秀的犀利营销竞争。

Disney was forced to defend its business strategy, after Nelson Peltz launched a fresh proxy⁹ fight to gain a seat on the company’s board.

迪士尼被迫为自己的商业战略辩护，此前，纳尔逊·佩尔茨为在公司董事会获得一个席位，发起了一场新的代理权争夺战。

In February Mr Peltz’s hedge fund, Trian Partners, backed down from its battle to get a board seat, saying that Disney’s restructuring plan, which included 7,000 job losses, did “everything we wanted them to do”. 佩尔茨的对冲基金Trian Partners在今年二月放弃了争取董事会席位的斗争，称迪士尼的重组计划(包括裁员7000人)“做了我们希望他们做的一切”。

But Mr Peltz now says that, since giving Disney the opportunity to “right the ship”, shareholders¹⁰ have lost 70bn dollars in value. 但佩尔茨现在表示，自从给予迪士尼“挽回颓势”的机会以来，股东已经损失了700亿美元的价值。

Disney responded by saying it is in the middle of a “significant transformation”.

迪士尼回应称公司正处于“重大转型”之中。

1 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

2 ostensible   

adj.(指理由)表面的，假装的

参考例句：

• The ostensible reason wasn't the real reason.表面上的理由并不是真正的理由。
• He resigned secretaryship on the ostensible ground of health.他借口身体不好，辞去书记的职务。

3 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

4 reactor   

n.反应器；反应堆

参考例句：

• The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

5 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

6 reactors   

起反应的人( reactor的名词复数 )； 反应装置； 原子炉； 核反应堆

参考例句：

• The TMI nuclear facility has two reactors. 三哩岛核设施有两个反应堆。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• The earliest production reactors necessarily used normal uranium as fuel. 最早为生产用的反应堆，必须使用普通铀作为燃料。

7 conglomerate   

n.综合商社，多元化集团公司

参考例句：

• The firm has been taken over by an American conglomerate.该公司已被美国一企业集团接管。
• An American conglomerate holds a major share in the company.一家美国的大联合企业持有该公司的大部分股份。

8 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

9 proxy   

n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人

参考例句：

• You may appoint a proxy to vote for you.你可以委托他人代你投票。
• We enclose a form of proxy for use at the Annual General Meeting.我们附上委任年度大会代表的表格。

10 shareholders   

n.股东( shareholder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The meeting was attended by 90% of shareholders. 90%的股东出席了会议。
• the company's fiduciary duty to its shareholders 公司对股东负有的受托责任