经济学人145:旅游公司 糟糕的假期

 　　Business Tour operators Horrible holidays

　　商业 旅游公司 糟糕的假期

　　The holiday business is in trouble. Firms are merging¹ like Brits in Benidorm

　　旅游业身陷困境，各公司正忙于兼并

　　EUROPE'S travel industry has had four terrible years: a recession, an Icelandic volcano, unrest in the Middle East, costly² oil, a weak dollar and a widespread sense of malaise. People want to get away from it all, but worry that they can't afford to.

　　欧洲的旅游行业已经经历了四年的低谷：经济衰退、冰岛火山喷发、中东骚乱、昂贵的油价、贬值的美元以及普遍疲软的经济。人们想要摆脱这些，却又担心无力承担。

　　Airlines, hotels and cruise ships have all suffered, but the worst-hit are the tour operators. To survive, they have merged⁴ and cut costs. In 2007 Thomas Cook, a German-owned travel firm, took over MyTravel, a British rival, to create Europe's second-biggest package-tour firm. A couple of months later Hanover-based TUI, Europe's biggest travel company, merged its travel business with First Choice, another British package-holiday company, to create TUI Travel, a company based in London and listed on the London Stock Exchange. Both package-holiday giants cut capacity by as much as 25% in the following years.

　　航空公司，酒店以及度假巡游船都受到了牵连，但受影响最大的还是旅游公司。他们通过兼并和削减开支来维持生存。德国的Thomas Cook旅游公司在2007年收购了其英国的竞争对手My Travel，从而组建了欧洲第二大的旅游服务公司。几个月后，欧洲最大的旅游公司，总部位于汉诺威的途易与英国的另一家旅游服务公司 First Choice合并了其旅游业务，从而成立了途易旅游。途易旅游的总部位于伦敦，并于伦敦证交所上市。两家旅游服务巨头在接下来的几年里缩小规模高达25%。

　　Yet mergers⁵ and downsizing have provided only temporary relief. On August 3rd Holidays 4 UK, a tour operator specialising in trips to Turkey, went bankrupt, leaving 12,800 holidaymakers stranded⁶. On the same day, Manny Fontenla-Novoa, the boss of Thomas Cook, was forced out of his job after three profit warnings in 12 months. His replacement⁷ will have a big job on his hands. In the nine months to June, Thomas Cook lost $326.1m before tax.

　　然而整合与缩小规模只是缓兵之计。八月三日，只提供土耳其旅行服务的旅游公司Holidays 4 UK宣布破产，造成了12,800名度假者的滞留。就在同一天，托马斯?库克的老板Manny Fontenla-Novoa在公司接到了12个月来的第三个利润预警后被迫离职。摆在他继任者面前的将是一项艰苦的工作。从去年九月到今年六月的九个月期间托马斯?库克的税前损失达3.261亿美元

　　TUI Travel is perking⁸ up a bit. Its pre-tax losses fell to ￡355m ($424m) in the nine months to June, from ￡563m for the same period last year. On August 10th it reported a 57% increase in its "underlying⁹ operating profits", a figure that excludes planeloads of supposedly one-off costs.

　　不过途易旅游正逐步恢复活力。它从去年同期5.63亿英镑的税前损失降到六月来的3.55亿英镑（4.24亿美元）。八月十号它宣布其"实际营业利润"增长了57%，这一数据还不包括大量可能的一次性花费

　　TUI Travel has several advantages. It is less centralised than Thomas Cook, more flexible and better managed. It sells fewer holidays in the turbulent Middle East. And its margins¹⁰ are buoyed¹¹ by its focus on fancy holidays rather than bargain booze-ups on beery beaches.

　　途易旅游还是有些优势的。它不像托马斯?库克那样高度集中化，相比之下更加灵活，管理得也更好。它在政局不稳的中东地区组织的线路并不多。利润来自于倍受重视的精品套餐路线，而不是便宜的沙滩啤酒派对。

　　Even so, a spokeswoman for TUI Travel admits that the high oil price is a worry. TUI Travel owns 143 aircraft. The company was fully¹² hedged for oil-price volatility¹³ this year but next year it is expecting a 30% increase in its fuel bill. Its French business is suffering because of political unrest in France's former African colonies, which are a favourite destination for French holidaymakers. TUI Travel is now planning to merge³ its French operations to create one brand in the hope that this will turn around its weakest unit.

　　尽管如此，途易旅游的发言人承认昂贵的油价的确令人担忧。途易旅游拥有143架飞机。今年该公司采取了严密的措施以防油价动荡，但明年它的燃油预算预计将增长30%。它在法国的业务也因原法属非洲殖民地的政治动荡而遭受了不小的损失，而这些地区恰恰是法国人热衷的度假胜地。途易旅游现在正计划把旗下的法国业务合并成一个品牌，希望以此来拯救那些经营惨淡的分支。

　　The traditional tour operators' business model is out of date, says Jamie Rollo of Morgan Stanley, a bank. Their fixed¹⁴ costs are high. They book flights and rooms months in advance, and still have to pay for them even if a volcano or terrorist forces travellers to cancel. And although they now do a lot of business online, they struggle to compete with cheaper online-only firms such as Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz.

　　"传统旅游公司的运营模式已经过时了，"摩根史坦利投资银行的杰米?罗洛说道，"他们的固有成本很高。他们需要提前几个月预定机票和房间，并且即使火山喷发或是恐怖袭击导致旅行取消他们也仍需支付这些费用。尽管现在他们尽管现在他们很多业务在网上进行，但却很难与那些如Expedia，Travelocity以及Orbit等这些更加便宜且只做网上服务的旅游公司相匹敌。

　　Further consolidation¹⁵ is likely. Germany's package-tour market is still fragmented and lucrative¹⁶, so REWE Touristik and others might soon be snapped up. TUI Travel and Thomas Cook might even merge, creating a giant and saving plenty of money. Alternatively, one of these two big boys might marry a low-cost airline, linking cheap flights with cheap beds.

　　进一步的整合是可能的。德国的旅游服务市场仍然较为零散并十分有利可图，所以像REWE Touristik一类的旅游公司很快就会变得十分抢手。途易旅游和托马斯?库克甚至可能合并，以成为行业巨头并进一步节省资金。或者，这两个大块头之一会兼并一家低成本的航空公司，形成一条完整的低价住宿低价机票产业链。

　　In the short run Thomas Cook's new boss will have to improve the company's dire¹⁷ finances. The firm is planning to sell assets worth ￡200m over the next six to 18 months, including some or all of its seven hotels. Its chief financial officer says that an equity¹⁸ issue is not on the cards, at least for now. He may have to change his mind. Holidays are supposed to be relaxing, but for the firms that provide them, they are anything but.

　　短期来看，托马斯?库克的新任老板首先要做的就是改善公司糟糕的财务状况。公司计划在接下来的6到18个月期间卖掉价值2亿英镑的资产，包括部分甚至全部其7家酒店.它的财务总监表示至少目前还不打算发行股票。他将来也许会改变主意。假期本应该是令人放松的，但对于那些提供这项服务的公司来说，情况就恰恰相反了。

1 merging   

合并（分类）

参考例句：

• Many companies continued to grow by merging with or buying competing firms. 许多公司通过合并或收买竞争对手的公司而不断扩大。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• To sequence by repeated splitting and merging. 用反复分开和合并的方法进行的排序。

2 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。

3 merge   

v.(使)结合，(使)合并，(使)合为一体

参考例句：

• I can merge my two small businesses into a large one.我可以将我的两家小商店合并为一家大商行。
• The directors have decided to merge the two small firms together.董事们已决定把这两家小商号归并起来。

4 merged   

（使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中

参考例句：

• Turf wars are inevitable when two departments are merged. 两个部门合并时总免不了争争权限。
• The small shops were merged into a large market. 那些小商店合并成为一个大商场。

5 mergers   

n.（两个公司的）合并( merger的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Mergers fall into three categories: horizontal, vertical, and conglomerate. 合并分为以下三种：横向合并，纵向合并和混合合并。 来自辞典例句
• Many recent mergers are concentrated within specific industries, particularly in retailing, airlines and communications. 现代许多合并企业集中进行某些特定业务，在零售业、民航和通讯业中更是如此。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

6 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

7 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

8 perking   

（使）活跃( perk的现在分词 )； （使）增值； 使更有趣

参考例句：

• The weather seems to be perking up. 天气似乎要变好。
• She is perking herself at mirror. 她正对镜化妆。

9 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

10 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

11 buoyed   

v.使浮起( buoy的过去式和过去分词 )；支持；为…设浮标；振奋…的精神

参考例句：

• Buoyed by their win yesterday the team feel confident of further success. 在昨天胜利的鼓舞下，该队有信心再次获胜。
• His encouragement buoyed her up during that difficult period. 他的鼓励使她在那段困难时期恢复了乐观的情绪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

13 volatility   

n.挥发性，挥发度，轻快，（性格）反复无常

参考例句：

• That was one reason why volatility was so low last year.这也是去年波动性如此低的原因之一。
• Yet because volatility remained low for so long,disaster myopia prevailed.然而，由于相当长的时间里波动性小，灾难短视就获胜了。

14 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。

15 consolidation   

n.合并,巩固

参考例句：

• The denser population necessitates closer consolidation both for internal and external action. 住得日益稠密的居民，对内和对外都不得不更紧密地团结起来。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• The state ensures the consolidation and growth of the state economy. 国家保障国营经济的巩固和发展。 来自汉英非文学 - 中国宪法

16 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

17 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

18 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。