本期原文选自The Economist 2016-12-03的封面文章The mighty dollar，释义来自牛津高阶七版、元照英美法词典、搜狗百科、维基百科等资源。如果您也在学习The Economist，欢迎订阅我的文集The Economist，一起学习交流。
The mighty【1】 dollar
THE world’s most important currency is flexing its muscles【2】. In the three weeks following Donald Trump’s victory in America’s presidential elections, the dollar had one of its sharpest rises ever against a basket of rich-country peers. It is now 40% above its lows【3】 in 2011. It has strengthened relative to emerging-market currencies, too. The yuan has fallen to its lowest level against the dollar since 2008; anxious Chinese officials are said to be pondering tighter restrictions on foreign takeovers by domestic firms to stem the downward pressure. India, which has troubles of its own making【4】 (see article), has seen its currency reach an all-time low【5】 against the greenback. Other Asian currencies have plunged to depths not seen since the financial crisis of 1997-98.
【1】mighty强而有力的，坚挺的；strong强劲的
【2】flex sb's muscles展现实力；flex屈伸四肢或肌肉
【3】low 低位，低点，低水平
【4】of sb's own making 自己造成的
【5】all-time low 历史最低点
The dollar has been gradually gaining strength for years. But the prompt for this latest surge is the prospect of【6】 a shift in the economic-policy mix in America. The weight of investors’ money has bet that Mr Trump will cut taxes and spend more public funds on fixing America’s crumbling【7】 infrastructure. A big fiscal boost would lead the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates at a faster rate to check inflation. America’s ten-year bond yield has risen to 2.3%, from almost 1.7% on election night. Higher yields are a magnet for【8】 capital flows (see article).
【6】prospect of sth/of doing sth 可能性；in prospect可望
【7】crumble 坍塌，破碎
【8】be a magnet for吸引
Zippier【9】 growth in the world’s largest economy sounds like something to welcome. A widely cited precedent is Ronald Reagan’s first term as president, a time of widening budget deficits and high interest rates, during which the dollar surged【10】. That episode caused trouble abroad and this time could be more complicated still. Although America’s economy makes up a smaller share of the world economy, global financial and credit markets have exploded【11】 in size. The greenback has become more pivotal【12】. That makes a stronger dollar more dangerous for the world and for America.
【9】Zippy迅速的
【10】surge猛涨；plunge猛跌
【11】explode爆炸式增长；increase exponentially呈指数增长
【12】pivotal关键的；pivot枢轴，支点
Novus ordo seclorum【13】
America’s relative clout【14】 as a trading power has been in steady decline【15】: the number of countries for which it is the biggest export market dropped from 44 in 1994 to 32 two decades later. But the dollar’s supremacy【16】 as a means of exchange and a store of value remains unchallenged. Some aspects of the greenback’s power are clear to see. By one estimate in 2014 a de facto【17】 dollar zone, comprising America and countries whose currencies move in line with the greenback, encompassed perhaps 60% of the world’s population and 60% of its GDP.
【13】Novus ordo seclorum“New order of the ages（时代新秩序）”的拉丁文，1782年首次设计的美国国徽背面的文字，自1935年印刷在一美元钞票的背面，代表美国脱离英国独立之后的新秩序。该文字是共济会的口号，相信阴谋论的人们将其误译为“New World Order（世界新秩序）”。
【14】clout 影响力
【15】be in steady decline 逐渐减弱，稳步下降
【16】supremacy (over sb/sth)霸权，霸主地位；white supremacy白人至上；total supremacy绝对优势
【17】de facto 事实上的，与「法律上的」〔de jure〕相对
Other elements are less visible. The amount of dollar financing that takes place beyond America’s shores has surged in recent years. As emerging markets grow richer and hungrier for finance, so does their demand for dollars. Since the financial crisis, low interest rates in America have led pension funds to look for decent yields elsewhere. They have rushed to buy dollar-denominated【18】 bonds issued in unlikely places, such as Mozambique and Zambia, as well as those issued by biggish emerging-market firms. These issuers were all too happy to borrow in dollars at lower rates than prevailed at home. By last year this kind of dollar debt amounted to almost $10trn, a third of it in emerging markets, according to the Bank for International Settlements【19】, a forum for central bankers.
【18】dollar-denominated以美元计价的（denominated in US dollars）；denominate以（某种货币）为单位；denomination 面额，面值
【19】Bank for International Settlements 国际清算银行
When the dollar rises, so does the cost of servicing【20】 those debts. But the pain caused by a stronger greenback stretches well beyond its direct effect on dollar borrowers. That is because cheap offshore borrowing has in many cases caused an increased supply of local credit. Capital inflows push up local asset prices, encouraging further borrowing. Not every dollar borrowed by emerging-market firms has been used to invest; some of the money ended up in bank accounts (where it can be lent out again) or financed other firms.
【20】service支付利息；service debts支付债务利息
A strengthening dollar sends this cycle into reverse. As the greenback rises, borrowers husband【21】 cash to service the increasing cost of their own debts. As capital flows out, asset prices fall. The upshot【22】 is that credit conditions in lots of places outside America are bound ever more tightly to the fortunes of the dollar. It is no coincidence that【23】 some of the biggest losers against the dollar recently have been currencies in countries, such as Brazil, Chile and Turkey, with lots of dollar debts.
【21】husband节约使用
【22】upshot一系列事件后的最后结果，结局
【23】It is no coincidence that绝非偶然
The eye of providence【24】
There are lurking dangers【25】 in a stronger dollar for America, too. The trade deficit will widen as a strong currency squeezes exports and sucks in imports. In the Reagan era a soaring deficit stoked【26】 protectionism. This time America starts with a big deficit and one that has already been politicised, not least by Mr Trump, who sees it as evidence that the rules of international commerce are rigged in other countries’ favour. A bigger deficit raises the chances that he act on his threats to impose steep tariffs on imports from China and Mexico in an attempt to bring trade into balance. If Mr Trump succumbs【27】 to his protectionist instincts, the consequences would be disastrous for all.
【24】The eye of providence上帝之眼（英语：Eye of Providence，音译普罗维登斯之眼、普洛维顿斯之眼），又称全视之眼（All-seeing Eye），代表“上帝”监视人类的法眼，常见的形式为一颗被三角形及万丈光芒所环绕的眼睛，以出现在美国国徽及一美元纸币的背面而广为人知。（来自维基百科）
【25】lurking danger潜在的危险
【26】stoke sth (up) 激起，煽动；stoke给……加燃料
【27】succumb (to sth)屈从
Much naturally depends on where the dollar goes from here. Many investors are sanguine【28】. The greenback is starting to look dear against its peers. The Fed has a record of backing away from【29】 rate rises if there is trouble in emerging markets. Yet currencies often move far away from fundamental values for long periods. Nor is it obvious where investors fleeing America’s currency might run to. The euro and the yuan, the two pretenders【30】 to the dollar’s crown, have deep-seated【31】 problems of their own. The Fed, whose next rate-setting meeting comes this month, may find it harder than before to avoid tightening in an economy that is heating up.
【28】sanguine (about sth)乐观的，充满信心的
【29】back away (from sb/sth) 躲避，避免
【30】pretender觊觎者，冒充者；covet觊觎
【31】deep-seated/deep-rooted根深蒂固的，强烈的
If the dollar stays strong, might protectionist pressure be defused【32】 by co-ordinated international action? Nascent talk of a new pact to rival the Plaza Accord【33】, an agreement in 1985 between America, Japan, Britain, France and West Germany to push the dollar down again, looks misplaced【34】. Japan and Europe are battling low inflation and are none too keen on stronger currencies, let alone on the tighter monetary policies that would be needed to secure them (see article).
【32】defuse缓和，平息
【33】Plaza Accord《广场协议》是美国、日本、英国、法国及西德等5个工业发达国家财政部长和央行行长于美国纽约的广场饭店秘密会晤后，在1985年9月22日签署的协议。其目的在联合干预外汇市场，使美元对日元及马克等主要货币有秩序性地下调，以解决美国巨额贸易赤字，从而导致日元大幅升值。（来自搜狗百科）
【34】misplaced不合时宜，不适宜的
Stock markets in America have rallied【35】 on the prospect of stronger growth. They are being too cavalier【36】. The global economy is weak and the dollar’s muscle will enfeeble【37】 it further.
【35】rally恢复元气，振作精神，货币或股票价格回升
【36】cavalier漫不经心的，目空一切的
【37】enfeeble使虚弱，使衰弱无力；feeble衰弱的，无力的
小结就不写了，可以参考商论的官方译文。
*注：本文仅供学习交流之用，不代表作者观点。
