Tariffs on China and the rampant U.S. inflation  Opinion 17:23, 12-Jan-2022  Azhar Azam

对中国的关税和失控的美国通胀

【词语解释】

1.rampant：adj. 猖獗的；蔓延的；狂暴的；奔放的

这个词语是新闻中常见的一个词语，凡是讲到事态严重无法控制，或者犯罪猖獗等等都可以用到这个词。例如：rampant crime，virus infections rampant。在这里rampant inflation，是指美国失控的通货膨胀。

Markets in the U.S. may receive yet another hot reading from the country's Bureau of Labor Statistics on January 12 when it releases the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for December 2021. The data would follow last month's grim announcement in which the agency revealed inflation had soared for a sixth consecutive month to 6.8 percent in November, the largest annual increase since the worst economic downturn of 1982.

        美国市场将会在1月12日收到美国劳工统计局发布的2021年12月的居民消费价格指数，不出意外，趋势将会跟上个月令人沮丧的公告一样，上个月公布的通货膨胀已经连续六个月增长到11月的6.8%，是继1982年经济低迷之后最大的一次年度增长。   

【词语解释】

1.hot reading 阅读热点 口语中可以应用

2.Bureau of Labor Statistics 劳工统计局

3.Consumer Price Index（CPI）居民消费价格指数，是度量居民生活消费品和服务价格水平随着时间变动的相对数，综合反映居民购买的生活消费品和服务价格水平的变动情况。简单的说，就是CPI升高，代表购买同样的生活消费品服务需要支付更多的钱，生活成本增加，同样金钱的购买力下降。一般说来当CPI>3%的增幅时称为Inflation，就是通货膨胀；而当CPI>5%的增幅时，称为Serious Inflation，就是严重的通货膨胀。文中已经连续（a sixth consecutive month）六个月增长到6.8%，已经是非常严重的通货膨胀。

4.grim adj. 严肃的，坚定的；令人不快的，令人沮丧的；阴森的，凄凉的；

In August 2021, Jerome Powell asserted the high inflation numbers were "transitory" and the U.S. central banking system will keep it close to its 2 percent objective over time. But heavy criticism forced the Fed Reserve chair, as well as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, to retire the term and made him concede the supply chain "factors pushing inflation upward will linger well into next year."

      2021年8月，美联储主席Jerome Powell断言，高通货膨胀数字将会是暂时性的，美国中央银行系统会在一段时间后将目标控制在接近2%。但是美国财政部长Janet Yellen，还有来自对美联储猛烈的抨击迫使他收回这个说法，并承认供给链因素造成的通货膨胀升高将会继续存在来年。

【词语解释】

1.美联储主席杰罗姆·鲍威尔Jerome Powell

2.美国财政部长treasury secretary，Janet Yellen

3.assert v. 坚称，断言；维护，坚持（权利或权威）；坚持自己的主张，表现坚定；生效，起作用

关于表达肯定，断言等坚持自己主张的词语除了assert，类似的还有affirm，allege，avouch，aver等等。

4.transitory adj. 短暂的，暂时的；瞬息的

5.retire the term

retire，除了有退休，离职等意思外，还有停止使用，收回等等意思

term，是一个含义非常丰富的词语，以前多见用于时期啊等等，还有术语，专有名词；措辞，说话的方式等意思。

6.concede v. （通常指不情愿地）承认；认（输），承认（失败）；授予，让与；让对手得分

7.linger v. 继续存留，缓慢消失；流连，逗留；持续看（或思考）；苟延残喘；消磨，缓慢度过

8.Supply chain，供应链是指生产及流通过程中，涉及将产品或服务提供给最终用户活动的上游与下游企业所形成的网链结构。

Rolling back tariffs on imports from China, a holdover from Donald Trump, could have eased inflation and supply chain woes of the U.S. that would perforce bite American consumers and importers; the U.S. President Joe Biden seems much too cautious to do so over fear of political backlash from Republicans especially before midterms.

        降低从中国进口的关税本来可以消除通货膨胀和美国供给链的困难，这些困难一定会给美国消费者和进口商产生不良影响。但是美国总统Joe Biden似乎过于谨慎，出于对政治上来自共和党反对的畏惧，尤其是在中期选举前，他没有这么做。

【词语解释】

1.roll back 击退；

2.holdover n. 延期；任期届满后仍占据同样地位的人；剩余物

3.woe n. 困难，灾难；痛苦，悲伤

还有一个类似的单词可以联系起来记忆，foe n. 敌人，对头  friend and foe 朋友和敌人

4.perforce adv. 一定，必须；必然地

这是个副词，但是长得非常像动词

5.over fear of  在害怕

Yet in the process, Biden's indecision is costing his acceptance in the American public once the sticker shock hit families across the board with food, electricity, gasoline and used car prices going up by 6.4 percent, 6.5 percent, 58.1 percent and 31.4 percent, respectively, in the last year. The inflationary turmoil will further dampen the consumer confidence, which sank to a nine-month low in November 2021, and could even beat economists' predictions that this phase could "last another year easily."

Biden的犹豫不决正在消耗着美国公众对他的信任。在过去的一年中，食物，电力，汽油和二手汽车价格全面上涨，分别为 6.4%，6.5%，58.1% 和31.4%，一旦美国家庭消费上遭到更猛烈的打击，信任度就会进一步下降。通胀的动荡进一步使消费者信心低迷，2021年11月连续九个月下降，甚至打击着经济学家的预测，毫无疑问这一阶段将会持续到下一年。

【词语解释】

1.decision  &  indecision  这两个词正反义词，可以联合记忆

decision  n. 决定，抉择；判决，裁定；果断，决断力；作决定，决策

indecision  n. 优柔寡断；犹豫不决

2.turmoil 这个是近期新闻中出现非常频繁的词语，n. 混乱，骚动，同样的意思还有 riot，disturbance

3.dampen

damp 是潮湿的意思，dampen是它的动词形式，v. 使潮湿，弄湿；减弱，抑制

After tormenting inflation figures, the Fed officials in a policy meeting in December also noted the supply chain bottlenecks and labor shortages, limiting companies' ability to meet prodigious demand, will "persist well into next year at least" and "be more widespread" than originally thought. With Omicron as well as more forceful and severe supply chain issues posing downside risks to the economic activity and upside risks to inflation, 2 percent inflation target appears distant in near term.

美联储官员在12月份一个会议上也指出供给链瓶颈和劳动力短缺，还有众多生产厂家生产能力难以满足广大的需求，这些一定会持续到至少下一年度，并且将会以超过最初的估计的扩散。其他更加严重的供给链问题还有Omicron，造成了经济下行和通胀的风险，2%的通胀目标似乎在近阶段看来很遥远。

【词语解释】

1.torment n. （肉体、精神上的）折磨，痛苦；使人痛苦的人（物）

2.prodigious adj. （范围，规模，程度）巨大的，庞大的

The year 2021 was believed to bring some stability to the U.S. and international economy on the back of a moderate Biden's election as American president. The U.S. companies pinned hopes on him to tone down Washington's harsh stance toward Beijing for the sake of the national economy and their business interests in China that had been adversely affected first by Trump's acrimonious tariffs and then by the pandemic.

2021年在Biden上台后，被认为是能够给美国和国际经济带来稳定的一年。美国的公司指望他能够为了国家经济和他们的在华利益缓和华盛顿的强硬的对华态度，这些曾经在Trump激烈的关税政策和疫情下先后产生了负面影响。

【词语解释】

1.tone down 缓和；柔和；降低

2.harsh stance 严厉的态度

3.for the sake of 为了……的利益

4.acrimonious  adj. 讥讽的；（言辞、辩论）激烈的，尖刻的

Nevertheless, apart from announcing a top-to-bottom China review in January, Biden hasn't adopted any tangible action to simmer down the U.S. trade disputes with China, including reducing or eliminating duties on $350 billion Chinese goods. It is despite the fact that this administrative incapacity has harmed U.S. economy and national competitiveness by raising the manufacturing costs for American manufacturers.

尽管如此，1月份的这篇报告除了通篇提到中国，Biden并没有采用明确的行动来缓解中美贸易争端，包括减少和免除关于350billion美元的中国商品的关税。尽管这个是事实，官方提高了美国制造商的制造成本，是他们的无能给美国经济和国际竞争力带来了伤害。

【词语解释】

1.top-to-bottom 从上至下，就是完全彻底的意思

2.tangible  adj. 明确的，真实的；可触摸的，可感知的

intangible  adj. 不可捉摸的，难以确定的；（资产，利益）无形的

3.simmer down 冷静下来

The contradictions, such as Yellen's criticism of tariffs hurting U.S. consumers and the phase one deal, slow review process and amplified sanctions on Chinese companies will bewilder and disappoint U.S. business leaders who campaigned for and welcomed Biden. Still, the U.S. industry isn't as pessimistic about a thaw in the China-U.S. relationship as it was prior to the Xi-Biden virtual summit in November, and it has urged the administration to reduce "harmful Section 301 tariffs and broaden the tariff exclusion process" to curb the inflationary spiral.

这个矛盾，来自美国财政部长对于侵害美国消费者关税的批评和中美贸易谈判的第一阶段，缓慢的审核过程还有对来自中国商品扩大的制裁，使欢迎Biden的美国商人们感到迷惑和失望。在11月Xi-Biden会谈之前美国工业仍然对中美关系解冻没有那么悲观，他们仍然督促当局降低301关税政策来抑制通胀。

【词语解释】

1.bewilder v. 使迷惑，使糊涂

2.thaw n. 解冻时期，融化季节；（敌对国家之间）关系缓和

Rising prices are one major factor for Biden's popularity decline, notwithstanding odd gains in GDP and employment numbers. Tariffs on imports from China couldn't protect American jobs; they cost America 300,000 manufacturing jobs, said Kamala Harris in her vice-presidential debate with Mike Pence. With inflation acting as a "repressive tax" overburdening the poor and negatively impacting the domestic consumers using mostly Chinese goods, tax rate hike would squeeze business operations and slow the U.S. economic growth.

虽然有一些GDP和就业数字等原因，升高的物价仍然是Biden支持率下降的一个主要原因。增加对华进口关税不能保护美国人的工作，升高关税的代价就是减少了30万个工作岗位，这个是Kamala Harris在和前任副总统Mike Pence辩论中讲的。通胀作为一种压制性税收加剧了穷人的负担，影响到了主要使用中国商品的国内消费者，税率上调将会挤压影响商业操作，减慢美国经济增长。

【词语解释】

1.notwithstanding prep. 虽然，尽管

同样的意思还有although，though，albeit

Trump's trade war with China was a sharp divergence from the U.S. decades-old credo of free trade and open markets. Ideas such as "cap-and-trade system," based on an outdated 1980s proposal by issuing dollar-equivalent import certificates to exporters to reduce trade deficit, will do little to repair the tensed trade ties between the two largest economies as well as drive up inflation for American consumers.

Trump挑起的中美贸易战跟美国以往数十年的自由贸易和开放市场是有显著差异的。量管制与排放交易系统这个理念是基于1980年曾经有提议向出口商颁发美元等值的进口许可证来降低贸易赤字这一过时的建议产生的，但是这个跟为美国消费者抬高通胀一样，对于修复两个最大经济体之间紧张的贸易关系几乎没有任何用处。

【词语解释】

1.credo n. 信条，教义

类似的词语还有doctrine，一般用于某某主义

2.cap-and-trade system 总量管制与排放交易系统，是控制二氧化碳排放的唯一方法

In an article for the Wall Street Journal, former U.S. officials blasted Biden's "worker-centric" policies that were "gouging" Americans and stoking inflation. While his strategy to toe Trump's line on trade war with Beijing won't stop the vertical rise in the prices of household items, risks of stagflation and frustration stemming from the U.S. president's inaction would make 2022 a challenging year for the administration.

华尔街杂志上有一篇文章说到，前美国官员严厉地批评了Biden的以员工为中心的政策，这是在欺骗美国人民并且加剧了通货膨胀。他延续了Trump对北京的贸易战这一策略并没有让家用物品价格停止上涨。美国总统的不作为带来了滞胀和挫败的风险，并且将会使得2022年成为这届政府备受考验的一年。

【词语解释】

1.blast 本来是爆炸的意思，这里是猛烈的抨击批评的意思

2. worker-centric 以员工为中心，这个以某某为中心的表达可以频繁套用的

3.stoke vt. 拨旺火；使饱吃一顿，这里是指的加剧通货膨胀的意思

4.toe the line 是一个很有意思的短语，它的意思与脚趾没有什么关系，而是表达“听从命令、遵守规则”的意思。

5.vertical 垂直的  horizontal 水平的

6.stagflation  n. [经] 滞胀，不景气状况下之物价上涨  停滞性通货膨胀

Controversial legislations just before the largest global trade deal among 15 countries excluding the U.S. known as Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership took effect on January 1 – was an attempt to disrupt the global trade and regional harmony. The move out of sheer frustration exposed the so-called America's indispensability in international trade and is likely to backfire since it would further feed the almost five-fold inflation in the country.

另外，对于美国以外有着15个国家参与的区域全面经济伙伴关系协定于1月1日正式生效。美国那些备受争议的法案是对破坏全球贸易和区域和睦的又一次试探。这些动作纯粹是出于畏惧，所谓的美国在国际贸易中必不可少很有可能适得其反，这些动作将有可能会进一步带来五倍的通货膨胀。

【词语解释】

1.out of sheer 纯粹出于...

2.backfire  v. 产生事与愿违的不良（或危险）后果，适得其反；（发动机或车辆）回火，逆火

Biden's initial $1.9 trillion early economic recovery plan was warned of a "nasty" spike in inflation not seen in a "generation" by the prominent economists. As the White House sought even more fiscal stimulus, they in May foresaw the threat of the economy overheating and a price boom. Rather than stopgap solutions, the U.S. president should strengthen supply chain cooperation with China and come up with an unequivocal answer to the entrenched tariff issue, brunt of which is borne by American companies and consumers and that remains one of the core factors behind high inflation in the United States.

Biden最初的1.9 trillion美金早期经济复苏计划，被警告可能带来通胀，而当时那些接触的经济学家没有看到。正如白宫寻求甚至更多的财政刺激一样，他们五月份预见到对于经济过热和物价上涨的威胁。美国总统应该抛弃那些权宜之计，加强跟中国在供给链的合作，并且想出一个明确的应对之策，来应对根深蒂固的关税政策，和来自美国公司和消费者的冲击，这仍然是一个美国通胀背后的核心因素。

【词语解释】

1.unequivocal  adj. 明确的；不含糊的

stopgap n. 权宜之计；临时替代品

2.entrench 根深蒂固