2019年经济学人 埃航失事:波音信誉遭到危机(3)

 

Then comes geopolitics. With their hubs in Seattle and Toulouse, Boeing and Airbus are among the West’s largest exporters and a rare example of an industry in which China cannot compete. It would be depressing, but not impossible, if safety decisions were influenced by trade tensions. Over time, China and India may insist that the duopoly make more aircraft within their borders, to capture more jobs and intellectual property. That could require a restructuring of how both firms manufacture. Rows over aircraft emissions¹ will further complicate² the debate.

然后是地缘政治。波音和空客的枢纽位于西雅图和图卢兹，处于西方最大出口商位列，也是中国无法与之竞争的一个罕见行业。如果安全决策受到贸易紧张局势的影响，这将令人沮丧，但并非不可能。随着时间的推移，中国和印度可能会坚持要求这两家双头垄断企业在各自境内制造更多的飞机，以获取更多的就业机会和知识产权。这可能需要对两家公司的生产方式进行重组。有关飞机排放的争吵将使这场辩论进一步复杂化。

Neither Boeing nor Airbus is about to go bust³. Any flaw in the MAX 8 will probably be resolved, as battery problems in the 787 Dreamliner were in 2013. Boeing has $12.7bn of cash and bank lines to cushion it from the reputational crisis. Both firms are ultimately backed by governments. In any case, demand for planes will grow. But ahead lie environmental and technological⁴ uncertainty⁵, organisational complexity⁶ and geopolitical tension. The years of bumper⁷ margins⁸ may be over.

波音和空客都不会破产。MAX 8的任何缺陷都可能解决，就像2013年787梦幻客机的电池问题一样。波音坐拥127亿美元现金和银行贷款，以防缓冲声誉危机不时之需。这两家公司最终都得到了政府的支持。无论如何，对飞机的需求将会增长。但未来将面临环境和技术不确定性、组织复杂性和地缘政治紧张局势。多年来利润丰厚的时代可能已经结束。

1 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

2 complicate   

vt.使复杂化，使混乱，使难懂

参考例句：

• There is no need to complicate matters.没有必要使问题复杂化。
• These events will greatly complicate the situation.这些事件将使局势变得极其复杂。

3 bust   

vt.打破；vi.爆裂；n.半身像；胸部

参考例句：

• I dropped my camera on the pavement and bust it. 我把照相机掉在人行道上摔坏了。
• She has worked up a lump of clay into a bust.她把一块黏土精心制作成一个半身像。

4 technological   

adj.技术的；工艺的

参考例句：

• A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change.一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
• Today,the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements.当今， 随着科技进步，生活节奏不断增快。

5 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

6 complexity   

n.复杂(性)，复杂的事物

参考例句：

• Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
• The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。

7 bumper   

n.(汽车上的)保险杠；adj.特大的，丰盛的

参考例句：

• The painting represents the scene of a bumper harvest.这幅画描绘了丰收的景象。
• This year we have a bumper harvest in grain.今年我们谷物丰收。

8 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。