蘋果手機算得上是目前最熱的手機款式之一,蘋果公司的每個舉動也會帶來一系列的連鎖反應,前段時間,蘋果決定漲薪,這導致的最終結(jié)果將會使中國受益。下面,我們就來進入今天的托福雙語閱讀材料:蘋果漲薪 中國受益。
Apple’s decision to back wide-ranging pay and labour reforms at the Chinese factories of Foxconn, its biggest contract supplier, will clearly raise costs at both companies.
蘋果(Apple)決定支持其合同供應商富士康(Foxconn)在其在華工廠中實施廣泛的工資和勞資關(guān)系改革。此舉必將提高蘋果與富士康兩家公司的成本。
But the Apple empire will not see a serious dent in its profitability, as its high-tech competitors will have to follow suit. And it’s a price worth paying to keep on the right side of consumers who don’t like the idea of buying iPhones made by slaves – and of the Chinese authorities who have backed pay rises for workers to help spread the benefits of economic growth.
但鑒于競爭對手也不得不效仿此舉,蘋果帝國的利潤不會受到嚴重沖擊。這是值得付出的代價,因為如此一來蘋果就與消費者和中國*站在了一個陣營中——消費者不希望購買由奴隸生產(chǎn)的iPhone,而中國*為了讓經(jīng)濟增長惠及更多人,一直支持為工人漲薪。
Investors believe the electronics industry can take this in its stride. Despite the dramatic headlines, shares in Hon Hai, Foxconn’s parent, fell just 1.3 per cent in Taipei on Friday, following a 1.3 per cent drop in Apple on Thursday.
投資者相信,電子行業(yè)能夠從容接受提高工人工資。盡管漲薪新聞引人注目,但富士康母公司鴻海(Hon Hai)的股價周五在臺北只跌了1.3%,此前周四蘋果股價也跌了1.3%。
As the FT reported, the news came hours after Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, toured a Foxconn production line in China, when the US-based Fair Labor Association announced the contract manufacturer had agreed to improve conditions for its 1.2m workers.
如英國《金融時報》此前報道,蘋果首席執(zhí)行官蒂姆?庫克(Tim Cook)參觀富士康在中國的生產(chǎn)線幾個小時后,就傳出了新聞:總部位于美國的公平勞動協(xié)會(Fair Labor Association)宣布,富士康同意改善120萬名工人的工作條件。
With Foxconn operating at profit margins of only 1.5 per cent, compared to 30 per cent at Apple, it’s clear that the world’s most valuable company by capitalisation will have to bear most of the extra cost.
富士康的營業(yè)利潤率只有1.5%,而蘋果則為30%,顯然,蘋果這家全球市值的企業(yè)將承擔大部分因漲薪導致的額外成本。
It won’t have any difficulty finding the money in its $100bn cash pile. Nor should the agreement gravely impair its profitability. The estimated manufacturing labour content of an iPhone or iPad is around 5 per cent. China Capital Securities puts labour costs at just 2-3 per cent of total operating costs at Hon Hai.
蘋果擁有1000億美元現(xiàn)金流,因此承擔這些成本并不困難。漲薪協(xié)議也不會對盈利能力產(chǎn)生重大影響。據(jù)估計,iPhone和iPad的生產(chǎn)勞動成本約為5%。中國中信證券(Citic Securities)則認為,勞動成本只占鴻海全部經(jīng)營成本的2-3%。
The impact on western companies less profitable than Apple might be more significant, because these manufacturers will now come under pressure both in the US and China. Those in the firing line include Hewlett-Packard, Nokia, Motorola and Sony.
不過,比蘋果盈利能力弱的西方企業(yè)受到的沖擊可能更為嚴重,這些生產(chǎn)商不管是在美國還是中國,目前都面臨漲薪壓力。首當其沖的包括惠普(Hewlett-Packard)、諾基亞(Nokia)、摩托羅拉(Motorola)和索尼(Sony)。
But the industry as a whole should be able to manage the shock, just as the sports shoe sector adapted to higher Chinese labour costs in the 1990s after a high-profile campaign against Nike, the market leader. Just like Nike, Apple and co make stuff that everybody seems to want.
但是,這個行業(yè)整體上應該可以應對這次沖擊,正如20世紀90年代,運動鞋行業(yè)適應了中國勞動成本上漲一樣——當時,市場者耐克(Nike)面對的要求加薪的呼聲。蘋果和耐克一樣,生產(chǎn)的是人人似乎都需要的產(chǎn)品。
Pay has already been rising, with Foxconn leading the way following a spate of suicides in 2010. Last month the company announced another round of wage increases of 16-25 per cent.
中國工人的工資此前就已經(jīng)在上漲。富士康在2010年出現(xiàn)一系列工人自殺事件后,上調(diào)了工資。上個月,富士康宣布工資再漲16-25%。
And Beijing wants to see further improvements over the coming years so that workers benefit from the fruits of their labours.
中國政府希望未來工資能夠繼續(xù)上漲,讓工人從自己的勞動果實中獲益。
China’s share of low-tech exports has already started to fall. It accounted for 53.6 per cent of US imports of textiles and clothes last year, compared to 53 per cent in 2010. Low-wage Vietnam and Bangladesh are among the countries gaining market share.
中國在低附加值領域的出口份額已經(jīng)開始下降。去年中國產(chǎn)品占美國進口紡織品和服裝的比重已經(jīng)從2010年的53.6%降至53%。工資水平更低的越南和孟加拉等國的市場份額開始增加。
But this isn’t bad for China. Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, the east Asian economies which became wealthy through their manufacturing process, all moved out of low-tech exports as they moved up the value chain.
但這對于中國而言不是壞事。日本、韓國和臺灣等通過制造業(yè)起飛的東亞經(jīng)濟體在向價值鏈上游轉(zhuǎn)移時,都擺脫了對低附加值出口的依賴。
Chinese average wages are now above those of its low-pay rivals, as the chart below shows. But it has a big cost advantage over Malaysia and Thailand, exporters of the high-tech hardware that China now wants to move into.
目前中國的平均工資高于其低收入的競爭對手。不過,相對于馬來西亞和泰國而言,中國依然具有明顯的成本優(yōu)勢。馬來西亞和泰國以出口高科技硬件為主,現(xiàn)在中國希望進入這一行列。
Furthermore, China, with its good education levels, big infrastructure developments and work ethic remains very competitive, not least in its inland regions, where wages lag behind those on the coast. As this chart shows, China’s export prices in dollar terms are not rising as fast as prices from other emerging markets.
此外,中國教育水平高,基礎設施發(fā)達,職業(yè)道德良好,因此依然極具競爭力,更何況內(nèi)陸地區(qū)比沿海地區(qū)的工資水平低得多。按美元計,中國出口價格的漲幅并沒有像其他新興市場那么快。
Companies as well as countries are adjusting. Indeed. Hon Hai is a perfect example. Only this week it announced plans to buy 10 per cent of Sharp, the ailing Japanese display screen company, in a $806m deal. It may have made its fortune in low-cost labour but it sees its future in high-end technology.
中國的企業(yè)和中國都在調(diào)整。沒錯。鴻海就是一個典型。就在本周,鴻海宣布以8.06億美元收購日本境況不佳的顯示器制造商夏普(Sharp)10%的股份。鴻?;蛟S依靠低廉的勞動力起家,但是其未來則在高科技領域。
蘋果(Apple)決定支持其合同供應商富士康(Foxconn)在其在華工廠中實施廣泛的工資和勞資關(guān)系改革。此舉必將提高蘋果與富士康兩家公司的成本。
But the Apple empire will not see a serious dent in its profitability, as its high-tech competitors will have to follow suit. And it’s a price worth paying to keep on the right side of consumers who don’t like the idea of buying iPhones made by slaves – and of the Chinese authorities who have backed pay rises for workers to help spread the benefits of economic growth.
但鑒于競爭對手也不得不效仿此舉,蘋果帝國的利潤不會受到嚴重沖擊。這是值得付出的代價,因為如此一來蘋果就與消費者和中國*站在了一個陣營中——消費者不希望購買由奴隸生產(chǎn)的iPhone,而中國*為了讓經(jīng)濟增長惠及更多人,一直支持為工人漲薪。
Investors believe the electronics industry can take this in its stride. Despite the dramatic headlines, shares in Hon Hai, Foxconn’s parent, fell just 1.3 per cent in Taipei on Friday, following a 1.3 per cent drop in Apple on Thursday.
投資者相信,電子行業(yè)能夠從容接受提高工人工資。盡管漲薪新聞引人注目,但富士康母公司鴻海(Hon Hai)的股價周五在臺北只跌了1.3%,此前周四蘋果股價也跌了1.3%。
As the FT reported, the news came hours after Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, toured a Foxconn production line in China, when the US-based Fair Labor Association announced the contract manufacturer had agreed to improve conditions for its 1.2m workers.
如英國《金融時報》此前報道,蘋果首席執(zhí)行官蒂姆?庫克(Tim Cook)參觀富士康在中國的生產(chǎn)線幾個小時后,就傳出了新聞:總部位于美國的公平勞動協(xié)會(Fair Labor Association)宣布,富士康同意改善120萬名工人的工作條件。
With Foxconn operating at profit margins of only 1.5 per cent, compared to 30 per cent at Apple, it’s clear that the world’s most valuable company by capitalisation will have to bear most of the extra cost.
富士康的營業(yè)利潤率只有1.5%,而蘋果則為30%,顯然,蘋果這家全球市值的企業(yè)將承擔大部分因漲薪導致的額外成本。
It won’t have any difficulty finding the money in its $100bn cash pile. Nor should the agreement gravely impair its profitability. The estimated manufacturing labour content of an iPhone or iPad is around 5 per cent. China Capital Securities puts labour costs at just 2-3 per cent of total operating costs at Hon Hai.
蘋果擁有1000億美元現(xiàn)金流,因此承擔這些成本并不困難。漲薪協(xié)議也不會對盈利能力產(chǎn)生重大影響。據(jù)估計,iPhone和iPad的生產(chǎn)勞動成本約為5%。中國中信證券(Citic Securities)則認為,勞動成本只占鴻海全部經(jīng)營成本的2-3%。
The impact on western companies less profitable than Apple might be more significant, because these manufacturers will now come under pressure both in the US and China. Those in the firing line include Hewlett-Packard, Nokia, Motorola and Sony.
不過,比蘋果盈利能力弱的西方企業(yè)受到的沖擊可能更為嚴重,這些生產(chǎn)商不管是在美國還是中國,目前都面臨漲薪壓力。首當其沖的包括惠普(Hewlett-Packard)、諾基亞(Nokia)、摩托羅拉(Motorola)和索尼(Sony)。
But the industry as a whole should be able to manage the shock, just as the sports shoe sector adapted to higher Chinese labour costs in the 1990s after a high-profile campaign against Nike, the market leader. Just like Nike, Apple and co make stuff that everybody seems to want.
但是,這個行業(yè)整體上應該可以應對這次沖擊,正如20世紀90年代,運動鞋行業(yè)適應了中國勞動成本上漲一樣——當時,市場者耐克(Nike)面對的要求加薪的呼聲。蘋果和耐克一樣,生產(chǎn)的是人人似乎都需要的產(chǎn)品。
Pay has already been rising, with Foxconn leading the way following a spate of suicides in 2010. Last month the company announced another round of wage increases of 16-25 per cent.
中國工人的工資此前就已經(jīng)在上漲。富士康在2010年出現(xiàn)一系列工人自殺事件后,上調(diào)了工資。上個月,富士康宣布工資再漲16-25%。
And Beijing wants to see further improvements over the coming years so that workers benefit from the fruits of their labours.
中國政府希望未來工資能夠繼續(xù)上漲,讓工人從自己的勞動果實中獲益。
China’s share of low-tech exports has already started to fall. It accounted for 53.6 per cent of US imports of textiles and clothes last year, compared to 53 per cent in 2010. Low-wage Vietnam and Bangladesh are among the countries gaining market share.
中國在低附加值領域的出口份額已經(jīng)開始下降。去年中國產(chǎn)品占美國進口紡織品和服裝的比重已經(jīng)從2010年的53.6%降至53%。工資水平更低的越南和孟加拉等國的市場份額開始增加。
But this isn’t bad for China. Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, the east Asian economies which became wealthy through their manufacturing process, all moved out of low-tech exports as they moved up the value chain.
但這對于中國而言不是壞事。日本、韓國和臺灣等通過制造業(yè)起飛的東亞經(jīng)濟體在向價值鏈上游轉(zhuǎn)移時,都擺脫了對低附加值出口的依賴。
Chinese average wages are now above those of its low-pay rivals, as the chart below shows. But it has a big cost advantage over Malaysia and Thailand, exporters of the high-tech hardware that China now wants to move into.
目前中國的平均工資高于其低收入的競爭對手。不過,相對于馬來西亞和泰國而言,中國依然具有明顯的成本優(yōu)勢。馬來西亞和泰國以出口高科技硬件為主,現(xiàn)在中國希望進入這一行列。
Furthermore, China, with its good education levels, big infrastructure developments and work ethic remains very competitive, not least in its inland regions, where wages lag behind those on the coast. As this chart shows, China’s export prices in dollar terms are not rising as fast as prices from other emerging markets.
此外,中國教育水平高,基礎設施發(fā)達,職業(yè)道德良好,因此依然極具競爭力,更何況內(nèi)陸地區(qū)比沿海地區(qū)的工資水平低得多。按美元計,中國出口價格的漲幅并沒有像其他新興市場那么快。
Companies as well as countries are adjusting. Indeed. Hon Hai is a perfect example. Only this week it announced plans to buy 10 per cent of Sharp, the ailing Japanese display screen company, in a $806m deal. It may have made its fortune in low-cost labour but it sees its future in high-end technology.
中國的企業(yè)和中國都在調(diào)整。沒錯。鴻海就是一個典型。就在本周,鴻海宣布以8.06億美元收購日本境況不佳的顯示器制造商夏普(Sharp)10%的股份。鴻?;蛟S依靠低廉的勞動力起家,但是其未來則在高科技領域。

