2007年VOA标准英语-Wal-Mart Officials Visit India Amid Protests

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
25 February 2007

 
Shoppers enter the Wal-Mart store in Williston, Vermont (file photo) 
Executives from the U.S. retail¹ giant Wal-Mart visited India last week to discuss a joint² venture with a domestic company in the country's booming retail sector³. But as Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi, Wal-Mart's plans to enter the Indian market are controversial.

A Wal-Mart company statement says its officials came to India to learn about the market firsthand, and explore the wholesale⁴ cash-and-carry business. Company officials visited shopping malls in Mumbai, and met government officials in New Delhi.

They maintained a low profile - for good reasons.

A joint venture between Wal-Mart and an Indian company, Bharti Enterprises, has generated strong concern among millions of small family-owned stores that dominate India's retail landscape.

Their fears found expression in several protests organized in Delhi and Mumbai by a group representing trade unions, traders and communist parties.

Reena Desai is the director of India F.D.I. Watch, an activist⁵ group aiming to prevent foreign direct investment in Indian retail. She says many small retailers⁶ have already suffered due to the entry of a few hypermarkets and supermarkets established by Indian companies investing in the retail sector. She fears Wal-Mart could have a devastating⁷ impact.

"This is the largest corporation in the world, so the amount of money, the amount of capital, the amount of power that they have is so much more times than even the Indian players," she said. "They are going to set a set a whole another standard of how they are going to do business in this country."

Wal-Mart cannot directly operate stores, due to government restrictions⁸ on foreign retailers. It plans to provide Bharti with the technology to links farmers and suppliers.

However, efforts by foreign retailers to force open the Indian market are also encountering powerful political opposition⁹. The influential¹⁰ head of the governing 
Employees of Chicago's first Wal-Mart prepare to greet customers at the grand opening of the store, 27 Sep 2006
Congress Party, Sonia Gandhi, has expressed concern for local shop owners. The government has asked the industry minister to examine the impact of transnational supermarkets on 40 million people who depend on the retail sector.

Countries, such as the United States and Britain, have long been pressuring for more market access for their companies. But on a recent visit to India, U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez admitted the issue is not easy.

"Obviously these are difficult decisions. There are domestic matters that need to be taken into account. So we recognize it, these are never easy discussions, but there is a lot to be gained," said Gutierrez.

Retail companies say their entry will modernize¹¹ supply chains and make goods cheaper for Indian customers.

Regardless of large foreign investment plans, those of large Indian companies may also threaten the small Indian retailers. Domestic competition in retail will likely only intensify¹² as the sector grows. Estimated to be worth $30 billion now, the retail sector is predicted to double in size in a decade.

1 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

2 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

3 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

4 wholesale   

n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售

参考例句：

• The retail dealer buys at wholesale and sells at retail.零售商批发购进货物，以零售价卖出。
• Such shoes usually wholesale for much less.这种鞋批发出售通常要便宜得多。

5 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

6 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

7 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

8 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

9 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

10 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

11 modernize   

vt.使现代化，使适应现代的需要

参考例句：

• It was their manifest failure to modernize the country's industries.他们使国家进行工业现代化，明显失败了。
• There is a pressing need to modernise our electoral system.我们的选举制度迫切需要现代化。

12 intensify   

vt.加强；变强；加剧

参考例句：

• We must intensify our educational work among our own troops.我们必须加强自己部队的教育工作。
• They were ordered to intensify their patrols to protect our air space.他们奉命加强巡逻，保卫我国的领空。