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经济学人:欧洲移民胜利大逃亡

时间:2014-05-20 16:23:56 编辑:mike 可可英语APP下载 | 可可官方微信:ikekenet

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Finance and economics
财经商业

European migration
欧洲移民

The great escape
胜利大逃亡

Emigration may not relieve pressure on wages in weak economies
在经济疲软的背景下，欧洲人移民国外也许不能在工资方面缓解压力

TO ECONOMISTS, an optimal currency area is one in which the gains from sharing a single currency outweigh the costs.
对于经济学家来说，一个最优货币区意味着共用同一种货币的收益要大于成本。

There is some debate as to whether the euro area qualifies.
欧元区是否符合最优货币区的条件，存在一些争议。

Among the keys to making shared currencies work, according to Robert Mundell, the godfather of optimal-currency theory, is a mobile workforce.
根据最优货币理论的鼻祖罗伯特蒙代尔的理论，流动的劳动力是从统一货币的政策中获利的关键。

Countries tying the monetary knot give up the right to slash interest rates or devalue when stormclouds gather.
当不利的经济信号显现时，参与实施统一货币政策的众多国家将放弃削减利率或干预货币贬值的权力。

A slump focused on just one region of the currency zone can therefore last a long time:
在统一货币区内，经济衰退集中在一个地区，因此，这种经济衰退会持续很长一段时间，

until falling wages make hiring there attractive once more.
直到这个地区的工资下降，使得招聘启事再次具有吸引力。

But if the jobless can up sticks for sunnier shores, this discomfort can be curbed.
但是如果失业者可以迁居到经济状况较好的地区，这种经济衰退就可以得到抑制。

In the 1990s a few prescient critics noted that fluidity was not a characteristic commonly used to describe European labour markets.
20世纪90年代，几位有先见之明的评论家指出，流动性指标不常用来说明欧洲劳动力市场特征。

Just 0.35% of Europeans migrate across borders each year, compared with the nearly 2.5% of Americans leaving one state for another.
每年跨国迁移的欧洲人仅有0.35%，而有近2.5%的美国人跨州迁移，两者相比，前者迁移人数很少。

The crisis boosted euro-area migration rates, but overall numbers remain small.
经济危机提升了欧元区的人口迁移比率，但总体迁移人数并不多。

Immobility might not always be quite the drag academics fear, however.
然而，人口流动停滞也许并不总是那么让学者们担心。

New research by Emmanuel Farhi of Harvard University and Ivan Werning of MIT finds that although migrants out of depressed regions get the expected boost from relocation,
在一项新开展的研究中，哈佛大学的Emmanuel Farhi和麻省理工的Iván Werning发现，尽管人们从经济萧条地区迁移出去可以按照预期推动迁居地的经济发展，

those left behind may or may not benefit, depending on the nature of the slump.
但原住地是否能从中获益，这取决于经济衰退的性质。

The problem, they note, is that departing migrants take their purchasing power with them when they go.
他们指出，问题是，移民者的离去使得原住地失去了这部分人群的购买力。

If a region's troubles are the result of tumbling exports that is no big deal.
如果一个地区的困扰是出口严重下滑的结果，这没什么大不了的。

Exporting surplus labour spares the struggling economy the need to suffer falling wages.
出口剩余的劳动力使得疲弱的经济不必再遭受工资下降的打击。

If instead the struggling region is facing weak domestic demand then shipping excess labour abroad does not help,
如果情况相反，经济疲弱地区正面临的是内需不足，，再向国外输出过剩劳动力就无益了，

because the loss of migrants'spending further weakens demand.
因为若失去这部分移民者的购买力，则会进一步削弱内需。

Instead, higher exports are needed to make up for insufficient domestic spending.
取而代之的解决方案应该是，需要更高的出口来弥补国内消费不足。

That requires improved competitiveness—which often means lower wages.
这就需要提高竞争力，而提高竞争力通常意味着低工资。

Interestingly, however much their lot improves when they move, migrants tend to judge their fortunes relative to economic conditions at home.
有趣的是，迁移过程中，无论移民者的生活怎样改善，他们都倾向于依据家乡的经济状况来评判自己的财富状况。

According to a new working paper from the Institute for the Study of Labour,
根据一个德国智囊团，劳动力研究所的一份新的工作报告，

a German think-tank, migrants to Germanybecome glummer the better the economy in their country of origin does.
迁入德国的移民变得愈加愁苦，他们本国的经济就变得愈好。

But they cheer up considerably when unemployment rises at home, presumably because that confirms the wisdom of having moved.
但是当发现本国失业率上升，他们就明显振作起来，大概是因为这证明了自己当初移民是明智的抉择。

By then, they have perhaps been in Germanylong enough to learn the word Schadenfreude.
到那时，他们也许已经在德国居住了很久，以至于都学会了幸灾乐祸这类德语单词。

扫描二维码进行跟读打分训练

1.according to 根据，按照；据…所说

All firsts in a car, according to gm.
据通用公司表示，这些都是汽车史上的头一遭。

According to weiner, product teams will continue to crank.
据韦纳尔表示，产品团队将继续发挥奇思妙想。

2.give up 放弃；投降；把…让给

Never give up, he says.
永不放弃，他说。

It seemed that there was a message for him not to give up.
这仿佛给他捎来飞鸿，让他不要放弃这一切。

3.focus on 致力于；使聚焦于

Many of these funds only focus on longer dated futures contracts.
这些基金很多只关注期限较长的期货合约。

Do entrepreneurs put enough focus on customer relationships?
创业者给予客户关系的重视足够吗？

4.compare with 与…相比；比得上

Life isn't fair-don't compare with or be jealous of others.
生活并不是公平的不要比较也不要嫉妒别人。

Atheists have precious little to compare with this.
相比之下，无神论者的资源就少得可怜。

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重点单词		查看全部解释
insufficient	[.insə'fiʃənt]	想一想再看 adj. 不足的	联想记忆 X 单词insufficient 联想记忆： sufficient（adj 充分的；足够的）
boost	[bu:st]	想一想再看 vt. 推进，提高，增加 n. 推进，增加	联想记忆 X 单词boost 联想记忆： boo读：不，st＝ST一种比较面的股票。既然不是ST，股价就可以增加，提高。
precious	['preʃəs]	想一想再看 adj. 宝贵的，珍贵的，矫揉造作的 adv.	联想记忆 X 单词precious 联想记忆： prec价值+ious...的→有价值的→珍贵的
domestic	[də'mestik]	想一想再看 adj. 国内的，家庭的，驯养的 n. 家仆，
escape	[is'keip]	想一想再看 v. 逃跑，逃脱，避开 n. 逃跑，逃脱，(逃
emigration	[.emi'greiʃən]	想一想再看 n. 移民
unemployment	['ʌnim'plɔimənt]	想一想再看 n. 失业，失业人数
knot	[nɔt]	想一想再看 n. 结，节 vi. 打结 vt.
institute	['institju:t]	想一想再看 n. 学会，学院，协会 vt. 创立，开始，制	联想记忆 X 单词institute 联想记忆： in进入，stitute站，建立－站进去；进入建立的状态－创立
prescient	['presiənt]	想一想再看 adj. 有先见之明的	联想记忆 X 单词prescient 联想记忆： pre预先+sci知道+ent→预先知道→有先见之明的