商业报道:农民工回厂过年

Chinese factory fears

Normally shut down this time of year, factories in China open their doors to stranded¹ workers. CNN's Eunice Yoon reports

Blizzards², icy weather and freezing temperatures, that pretty much sums up what China's had to deal with for more than a week now. It's left millions stranded and sent a big chill right through the economy.

Asia Business Editor Eunice Yoon has more details on that. Eunice, things do look like they are improving a bit at the moment, but you know, really it has been an atrocious situation for so many millions of people.

It really has. I mean for more than a week now, migrant workers have been huddled³ at train stations with little hope of catching⁴ a ride home. But it's not just the workers who have been left out in the cold.

The start of the Lunar New Year, generally a slow time for business in China. Most factories shut down as millions of workers head home for the holiday. But this year with China's worst winter in half a century, halting trains and traffic, manufacturers like Goldlok are getting ready for some workers to return earlier than expected.

"Some of them, you know, twenty percent almost start coming back to the factory because there's a lot of traffic jam on the station. And that's why we need to reopen the factory for them."

Heavy snowfall paralyzed sections of the country's rail system, leaving millions of people---many of them factory workers---stranded. Some services are resuming, still with the backlog⁵ of travelers, the government urged migrant workers to cash in their tickets and spend their only holiday for the year back at their factory dormitories.

"We need to have some people to especially to care their emotional needs. They leaving their hometown, you know, and work for a whole year and what their hope is going back home to visit their family, so if they can not go back because of the traffic, they would be very very upset."

It's a painful move for manufacturers, too. They have the added expense of reopening factories early at a time when the snowstorms have caused power shortages and are threatening to delay shipments. Analysts⁶ say it adds to growing concerns and costs for exporters.

"China's export sector⁷ has its own problem. The production cost went up quite a bit. And the new labor⁸ law certainly has all kinds of implications to the cost and exchange rate continue to appreciate."

Not a very auspicious⁹ start to 2008.

Some economists¹⁰ said that the severe weather is likely to affect exports for January and possibly into February.

And as far as the longer term forecast. Eunice, do you think that the effects of the snowstorm are going to be felt down the road?

"Well, not for exports, but definitely for food prices. We're already seeing a spike¹¹ in a lot of the prices for staple¹² vegetables, such as cabbages, some of them as high as 50% up. But going down the road a lot of economists say that the summer crops have likely been severely¹³ damaged, that's going to escalate¹⁴ inflation in China at a time when they really don't need er, higher prices up, but one thing that I thought was pretty interesting is that even further down the road for the autumn crops, some economists that I have been talking to say that those crops might benefit from the snowfall because there is more melted water or melted snow which turns, of course, into water, and right now there is a water shortage in China. So that's, of course, another possibility, er, positive possibility down the road."

Notes:

blizzard: A violent snowstorm with winds blowing at a minimum speed of 35 miles (56 kilometers) per hour and visibility of less than one-quarter mile (400 meters) for three hours

1 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

2 blizzards   

暴风雪( blizzard的名词复数 )； 暴风雪似的一阵，大量（或大批）

参考例句：

• Even in the summertime we might be struck by blizzards. 甚至在夏天，我们也可能受到暴风雪的袭击。
• Blizzards battered Britain for the third day. 大风雪袭击英国已进入第三天。

3 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

4 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

5 backlog   

n.积压未办之事

参考例句：

• It will take a month to clear the backlog of work.要花一个月的时间才能清理完积压的工作。
• Investment is needed to reduce the backlog of repairs.需要投资来減轻积压的维修工作。

6 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

7 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。

8 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

9 auspicious   

adj.吉利的；幸运的，吉兆的

参考例句：

• The publication of my first book was an auspicious beginning of my career.我的第一本书的出版是我事业吉祥的开始。
• With favorable weather conditions it was an auspicious moment to set sail.风和日丽，正是扬帆出海的黄道吉日。

10 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 spike   

n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效

参考例句：

• The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。
• They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。

12 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。

13 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

14 escalate   

v.(使)逐步增长(或发展)，(使)逐步升级

参考例句：

• It would tempt Israel's neighbors to escalate their demands.它将诱使以色列的邻国不断把他们的要求升级。
• Defeat could cause one side or other to escalate the conflict.失败可能会导致其中一方将冲突升级。