2022年经济学人 印度的黄金需求激增(上)

Finance & Economics

财经版块

Gold demand in India

印度的黄金需求

Carrot and stick

胡萝卜加大棒

India's booming demand for bullion¹ is worrying the government

印度激增的黄金需求让政府忐忑不安

Covid-19 hit India hard, leaving millions jobless and struggling to get by.

新冠疫情让印度遭受了重创，数百万人失业，民众生活艰难。

Yet Sachin Rana, who runs a jewellery stall in New Delhi’s Malviya Nagar market, says sales have been booming since lockdowns ended.

然而，在新德里的马尔维亚纳加尔(Malviya Nagar)市场经营一家珠宝摊位的萨钦·拉纳却表示，自疫情封锁结束以来，珠宝销量一直在激增。

After months in isolation², consumers were keen for a blowout during Diwali, a festival in November.

在与世隔绝几个月之后，消费者们迫不及待地想要在11月的排灯节期间来一场狂欢。

A bumper³ wedding season has followed, creating plenty of occasions to wear jewellery or give it as a gift.

紧随其后的便是盛大的婚礼季，佩戴珠宝或送珠宝礼物的场合大大增加。

The pandemic has proven that “Indians will never stop buying gold”, says Mr Rana.

拉纳表示，这场疫情已经证明，“印度人永远不会停止购买黄金”。

Pent-up demand for pendants and parties pushed bullion sales to the highest on record in the last quarter of 2021, reckons the World Gold Council, an industry body that has tracked consumption since 2005.

自2005年以来一直跟踪黄金消费的行业机构世界黄金协会(World Gold Council)估计，对吊坠的潜在需求以及各种聚会让黄金销量在2021年第四季度达到了历史最高水平。

Indians picked up around 340 tonnes of gold over the period, equivalent to the weight of five healthy Indian elephants every week.

在此期间，印度人共囤积了约340吨黄金，相当于每周囤积5头健康的印度大象的体重。

India’s special relationship with gold predates covid-19, of course.

当然，印度与黄金的特殊关系早在疫情之前就存在了。

It is the world’s second-largest market for the yellow metal, behind China, though it produces almost none at home.

虽然印度国内的黄金产量几乎为零，但它是仅次于中国的世界第二大黄金市场。

This is partly driven by tradition.

这在一定程度上是因为传统因素。

Brides are given jewellery as part of their dowry and it is deemed auspicious⁴ to buy bullion around certain religious festivals.

珠宝往往会作为新娘的嫁妆，而且在某些宗教节日期间购买金条被视为一种吉兆。

It is a handy store of undeclared wealth, too, often stashed⁵ in wardrobes or under the mattress⁶.

黄金还是一种便携的、未经申报的财产，通常会被藏在衣柜里或床垫下。

But the pandemic has also affirmed an investment advice passed on over generations: park savings⁷ in gold as a rainy-day fund.

但新冠肺炎疫情也证实了一条代代流传下来的投资建议：储蓄黄金以备不时之需。

In the past two years many families have made ends meet by selling jewellery, ornaments⁸, bars and coins at pawn⁹ shops and informal markets.

在过去的两年中，许多家庭通过在当铺和非正式交易市场出售珠宝、饰品、金条和硬币来维持生计。

Others have borrowed against the stuff.

还有人用这些物品作为抵押进行贷款。

The three largest non-bank financial companies offering gold loans saw their assets jump by 32%, 25% and 61% year on year, respectively, in 2020.

2020年，三大提供黄金贷款的非银行金融公司的资产分别同比增长32%、25%和61%。

Gold’s appeal as a safe haven¹⁰ is only rising: as tensions escalate¹¹ in Ukraine, its price is approaching records.

黄金作为安全避风港的吸引力只会上升：随着乌克兰紧张局势的升级，其价格正在接近纪录。

1 bullion   

n.金条，银条

参考例句：

• In the London bullion market yesterday,the price of gold was steady.昨天伦敦金银市场黄金价格稳定。
• Police have launched a man-hunt for the bullion robbers.警方已大举搜捕抢劫金条的罪犯。

2 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

3 bumper   

n.(汽车上的)保险杠；adj.特大的，丰盛的

参考例句：

• The painting represents the scene of a bumper harvest.这幅画描绘了丰收的景象。
• This year we have a bumper harvest in grain.今年我们谷物丰收。

4 auspicious   

adj.吉利的；幸运的，吉兆的

参考例句：

• The publication of my first book was an auspicious beginning of my career.我的第一本书的出版是我事业吉祥的开始。
• With favorable weather conditions it was an auspicious moment to set sail.风和日丽，正是扬帆出海的黄道吉日。

5 stashed   

v.贮藏( stash的过去式和过去分词 )；隐藏；藏匿；藏起

参考例句：

• She has a fortune stashed away in various bank accounts. 她有一大笔钱存在几个不同的银行账户下。
• She has a fortune stashed away in various bank accounts. 她在不同的银行账户上秘密储存了一大笔钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 mattress   

n.床垫，床褥

参考例句：

• The straw mattress needs to be aired.草垫子该晾一晾了。
• The new mattress I bought sags in the middle.我买的新床垫中间陷了下去。

7 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

8 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 pawn   

n.典当，抵押，小人物，走卒；v.典当，抵押

参考例句：

• He is contemplating pawning his watch.他正在考虑抵押他的手表。
• It looks as though he is being used as a political pawn by the President.看起来他似乎被总统当作了政治卒子。

10 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

11 escalate   

v.(使)逐步增长(或发展)，(使)逐步升级

参考例句：

• It would tempt Israel's neighbors to escalate their demands.它将诱使以色列的邻国不断把他们的要求升级。
• Defeat could cause one side or other to escalate the conflict.失败可能会导致其中一方将冲突升级。