President Clinton realized—as all of us must—that today's economy is global.We live in an era in which information,goods and capital speed around the jglobe,every hour of every day.Whether we like it or not,all of our fortunes are tied together.We are truly interdependent.
一个全球性的经济 正如每个人必须认识到的那样,克林顿总统认识到当今的经济具有全球性质。我们生活在这样一个时代中,信息、货物和资金每时每刻在世界上流动。不管我们喜欢与否,我们所有的命运都是相连的。我们真的需要相互依靠。
America supports international trade because we believe fundamentally that trade will enrich those nations who embrace its discipline.The great promise of trade is its potential to promote mutual prosperity—and to strengthen the bonds between sovereign nations.
美国支持国际贸易,因为我们确信,贸易会使那些遵守行为准则的国家富裕起来。极其光明的贸易前景是促进相互繁荣和加强主权国家之间联系的潜在力量。
The U.S.and China both demonstrate the potential of trade to improve the lives of our people.You know better than I the great achievements of the Chinese economy over the past two decades.In 1977,the sum total of Chinese imports and exports was less than $15 billion, putting China's share of world trade at 0.6 percent. The most populous country in the world,China ranked a distant 30th among exporting nations.By 1993 China's exports and imports totaled nearly $200 billion.China had become the world's tenth largest exporter.
美中两国都显示一种能提高两国人民生活的贸易潜力。你们比我更清楚中国经济在过去20年中所取得的伟大成就。在1977年,中国进出口总额还不到150亿美元仅占世界贸易总额的0.6%,世界上人口最多的中国在出口国家中排名靠后,仅是第30位。到1993年,中国进出口总额接近2,000亿美元,它已成为第10个最大的出口国。
Since 1978,when China began opening its economy to increased foreign investment and trade,aggregate output has more than doubled.The strongest growth has occurred in the coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan,where foreign investment and modern production methods have spurred productin of both domestic and export goods.Per capita GNP has grown at an average rate of 7.6% from 1980—1992.
自从1978年以来,中国经济为日益增加的外国投资和贸易敞开大门,总产量增加了一倍多。最强劲的增长发生在靠近香港和台湾对面的沿海地区。在这个地区,外国投资和现代生产手段的使用促进了国内和出口货物的生产。从1980年至1992年,人均国民生产总值平均增长率为7.6%。
The numbers are interesting,but how has this affected the people of China?In the last decade, telephone connections rose more than 60%.Electrical production more than doubled to 621 million kilowatt hours.In short,China has improved the economic well being of its people. The people of the United States also have experienced the benefits of world trade.Since World War II,the U.S.has been the world's largest economy and,in most years,the world's largest exporter.
看看数字是很有趣的。然而它又是怎样影响中国人的呢?在过去10年中,电话用户增加了60%以上。电力生产增加了一倍多,达到6.21亿千瓦小时。总之,中国提高了人民的生活水平。 美国人民也有得益于国际贸易的经历。自从第二次世界大战以来,美国一直是世界上最大的经济大国。在大多数年代中,它又是世界上最大的出口国。
But the importance of trade in our economy has exploded in the past three decades.In 1970,the value of two way trade was equal to just 13% of the U.S.economy.Last year,that figure,at 28%,was more than twice as high.In just the last seven years,jobs supported by U.S.exports(goods and services) have risen by 4 million,to a total of 11 million.That's almost one out of ten American jobs.Last year U.S.trade equalled $1.8 trillion.
但在过去30年中,我们经济贸易的重要性大大地增加了。在1970年,双边贸易的总值占了整个美国经济的13%。去年上升到28%,比1970年增加了一倍多。就在过去7年中,美国的出口(货物和服务)创造的就业机会增加了400万个,总数上升到1,100万个。这个数字就占美国就业总数的1/10。去年,美国贸易总额达到了1.8万亿美元。
Nor is the importance of trade likely to diminish for either China or the United States.China will continue to depend upon lucrative export markets to earn the foreign exchange it needs to develop and grow.At the same time,China's imports will supply the much needed machinery and technology to fuel its continued development.
无论是中国还是美国,都不会缩小贸易的重要性。中国会继续依靠获利的出口市场来赚取外汇以发展和增长自己的经济。同时,中国可用进口的机械和技术来加速它继续发展的速度。
For the United States,new commercial opportunities will grow most rapidly in the emerging markets.We estimate that three quarters of new export opportunities over the next twenty years—that's an incredible $1.9 trillion in potential exports—will come in the emerging markets of Asia and Latin America.This means jobs for American workers and a higher standard of living for the American people.
(Excerpted from“Remarks by Ambassador Kantor at the University of International Business and Economics”,1995)
对于美国来说,在不断涌现的市场上,新的贸易机会将以最快的速度增加。我们估计过,在未来的20年中,新的出口机会中的3/4,即数量可观的1.9万亿美元的潜在出口额,将来自亚洲和拉丁美洲不断出现的市场上。这将意味着为美国工人创造就业机会,使美国人民提高生活水平。 (原文及译文均选自李正中《国际经贸英汉翻译》之附录)
1.fortune一词可以理解为“命运”,也可以理解为“财富”。考虑到上一句提到“信息、货物和资金”,此处译作“我们所有的财富”可能更好。或者笼统一点,译作“我们的利益”。
2.在数字方面,汉英两种语言在“千”以上便没有相对应的数量单位了。汉语里有“万”和“亿”,在英语里是ten thousand和hundred million;英语里有million和billion,在汉语里则是“百万”和“十亿”。因此,遇到较大的数字,千万要仔细算一算。此处15 billion译作150亿是对的,如不小心,是很容易译错的。
3.翻译倍数,也是很容易出错的。double是个常用的动词,表示翻一番,可译作“增加一倍”,而不是“增加两倍”。
4.economy的本意是“经济”。此处的意思是“从经济角度看这个国家”,所以译作“经济大国”。
5.exporter可以指“出口商”、“出口公司”或“出口国”。此处指国家,当然译作“出口国”。
6.two way trade可能是泛指“进出口贸易”,而不是某两个国家之间的贸易。恐应译作“双向贸易”。
7.was more than twice as high字面上的意思是:是原来的两倍以上,和上面所说的more than doubled是一个意思。可译作“增加了一倍多”,但不能译作“增加了两倍多”。
8.one out of ten是英语里常见的一种说法,字面上的意思是“每十个里就有一个”。为了行文方便,可以译作“十分之一”。
来源:庄绎传《英汉简明翻译教程》。
原文及译文均选自李正中《国际经贸英汉翻译》之附录
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