国际经贸英语演讲.doc

4[2009.11.04] Handbrake turn 通用汽车：突然变卦 turn, 变卦, Handbrake, 通用汽车 General Motors keeps its European arm 通用汽车公司保留欧洲旗下公司 Handbrake turn 通用汽车：突然变卦 Nov 4th 2009 From E GM’s decision to keep Opel causes anger in Germany 通用汽车公司保留欧宝决定在德国激起不满 AP THE decision by General Motors to abandon its sale of a controlling stake in Opel to a consortium led by Magna, an Austrian-Canadian partsmaker, has embarrassed and angered the German government and alarmed workers. After months of negotiations, and with an agreement about to be signed, GM made a last-minute handbrake turn, unexpectedly announcing on Tuesday November 3rd that it will now hang on to all of its carmaking operations in Europe except Saab of Sweden, and try to revive them. 通用汽车公司决定不再出售其控股公司欧宝给奥地利-加拿大汽车零部件生产商麦格纳为首的收购集团，这使德国政府很没面子，很生气，同时欧宝公司的员工也很震惊。谈判了好几个月，而且马上就要签协议了，而就在最后的时刻，通用汽车公司来了个全角大转弯，出乎意料地在11月3日星期二宣布：除了瑞典的萨布汽车之外，公司将保留余下所有在欧洲的生产运作，而且公司还将努力重振这些业务。 Germany’s economy minister, Rainer Brüderle, denounced GM’s behaviour as “completely unacceptable”. Equally angry German trade unions are calling a strike at Opel, fearing that GM’s turnaround plans, unlike Magna’s, will involve huge job cuts. GM is likely to demand substantial state aid for its restructuring plan; the German government, having assured the European Commission in writing that the aid it had offered to Magna was available to anyone seeking to save Opel, may find it awkward to resist this. 德国经济部长莱纳?布吕德勒（Rainer Brüderle）指责通用的这一行为是“完全无法接受的”。同样很不满的还有德国贸易工会，由于担心通用保留欧宝的计划将不像出售给麦格纳那样，会采取大量的裁员，工会呼吁欧宝工人进行罢工。通用汽车公司很可能需要取得大量的政府援助来完成公司的重组；而已经向欧洲委员会书面作出政府对麦格纳提供的资助适用于任何想收购欧宝的公司承诺德国政府，如果不履行承诺就可能会很难堪。 When a bankrupt GM first put the businesses on sale last year, it had several options. GM’s European cars are made mainly in Germany and Britain (where they are badged as Vauxhall), but with some production in Spain, Poland and Belgium. The most logical deal, in terms of product lines and rationalising production cap