VOA慢速英语--贸易战迫使哈雷戴维森公司将部分生产线转向海外

Tariffs¹ Push Harley-Davidson to Produce Overseas

The American company Harley-Davidson will move the production of some motorcycles out of the United States to avoid rising costs from tariffs.

The European Union has ordered tariffs on American imports like bourbon, peanut butter and orange juice. The EU says about $3.4 billion worth of U.S. products are affected².

The new taxes are meant to answer tariffs the Trump³ administration is requiring on steel and aluminum⁴ imports from Europe.

Harley-Davidson sold almost 40,000 motorcycles in EU member countries last year. The company says the EU is its second largest market, after the United States.

The maker⁵ of the well-known motorcycle said on Monday that EU tariffs on its motorcycles jumped between six percent and 31 percent. The company said it expects the tariffs will result in an increased cost of about $2,200 per average motorcycle exported from the U.S. to Europe.

“Increasing international production…is not the company's preference,” the statement said. It added that the decision is the only way to operate a viable⁶ business in Europe, which Harley-Davidson called a ‘critical market.’

The company said that it will not raise its prices because that would cause an immediate⁷ and long-lasting effect on sales in Europe. In the near term, Harley-Davidson will instead absorb most of the cost of moving the production of motorcycles overseas. It estimates the cost for the rest of this year to be from $30 million to $45 million.

Harley-Davidson said that moving some production from the U.S. to factories overseas could take at least nine to 18 months to be completed.

On Monday, the vice⁸ president of the European Union's governing body said that Europe and China will form a group aimed at reforming international trade rules. The group will examine technology policy, government assistance to businesses and other issues in order to guarantee support for international trade.

European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen noted⁹ recent actions by U.S. President Donald Trump in disputes over steel, China's technology policy and other issues. He said they showed the need to modernize¹⁰ the World Trade Organization.?

The Wall Street Journal newspaper reports that the Trump administration plans to limit Chinese investment in American technology companies and high-tech¹¹ exports to China.

I’m Caty Weaver¹².

Words in This Story

tariff–n. a tax on goods coming into or leaving a country

preference– n. something that is liked or wanted more than something else

viable–adj. able to work, survive or develop

absorb–v. to take in

1 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。

2 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

3 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。

4 aluminum   

n.(aluminium)铝

参考例句：

• The aluminum sheets cannot be too much thicker than 0.04 inches.铝板厚度不能超过0.04英寸。
• During the launch phase,it would ride in a protective aluminum shell.在发射阶段，它盛在一只保护的铝壳里。

5 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

6 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

7 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

8 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 modernize   

vt.使现代化，使适应现代的需要

参考例句：

• It was their manifest failure to modernize the country's industries.他们使国家进行工业现代化，明显失败了。
• There is a pressing need to modernise our electoral system.我们的选举制度迫切需要现代化。

11 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

12 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。