Exports Are Leading Portugal Out of Slump
出口帶領葡國走出衰退
By Raphael Minder

MOURA, Portugal – This country is finding that increasing exports is the way to pull its economy out of a recession.
葡萄牙這個國家現在發現，要拉抬經濟走出衰退，辦法是增加出口。

For 127 years, Herdade de Manantiz has been producing olive oil, mostly for the domestic market. But having suffered through recession like thousands of other businesses, it is seeking customers outside Portugal.
葡萄牙的瑪納提斯公司生產橄欖油已127年，多半做內銷生意，但就跟葡國其他成千上萬企業一樣，他們在這波經濟衰退中受創，現正尋求國外顧客。

In February, Manantiz installed an irrigation system, an investment of $263,000, that is meant to help quadruple production. In May, the company completed its first overseas sale – to a Brazilian retailer that bought 504 bottles of oil. It is pursuing buyers in Sweden and Japan for its oil made from galega olives, which are unique to Portugal.
今年二月，瑪納提斯投注約合台幣782萬元的資金，設置一套灌溉系統，目的是讓產量增加三倍。今年五月，該公司做成了第一筆外銷生意，賣了504瓶橄欖油給一家巴西零售商。現在瑪納提斯正在接洽瑞典和日本買主，促銷他們由葡萄牙特有的加里西亞橄欖製成的橄欖油。

“It’s difficult to change direction for very small companies like ours, but there comes a point when there is really no other choice,” said António Morais de Almeida of Manantiz.
瑪納提斯公司的艾梅達說：「像我們這種規模很小的公司，很難改變方向，但總有些時候，真的是別無選擇了。」

Portugal is clearly hitting its export stride, a step that economists view as important not only in a Portuguese rebound but in the revival of other parts of Europe.
葡萄牙顯然朝擴展出口邁出了大步，許多經濟學家認為，這不只是振興葡萄牙經濟、同時也是振興歐洲其他國家經濟的重要一步。

Portuguese authorities said in August that rising exports were the main reason Portugal posted the strongest growth in the second quarter among the nations of the European Union. The country’s gross domestic product rose 1.1 percent from the previous quarter, according to data from Eurostat, the union’s statistics agency.
葡萄牙當局八月說，該國今年第二季經濟成長率在歐盟國家中拔得頭籌，主要原因就是出口增加。歐盟統計局統計，葡國第二季的國內生產毛額（GDP）比前一季增加了1.1%。

Struggling euro zone countries cannot make themselves globally competitive by devaluing the local currency to make their exports cheaper because they belong to the currency union. But Portugal’s unexpected increase in G.D.P., which followed 10 consecutive quarters of contraction, “shows that you can increase export competitiveness even without the option of an exchange rate devaluation,” said Luis Cabral of New York University.
在歐債危機中掙扎的歐元區國家，由於都使用同一種貨幣，無法透過本國貨幣貶值，讓出口產品較便宜，在國際上變得具有競爭力。但紐約大學卡布拉爾教授說，葡萄牙GDP在連續萎縮10季之後意外成長，顯示即使少了壓低匯率這個選項，仍能增強出口競爭力。

Mr. Cabral warned against overstating the turnaround. Further drag on the economy is expected because the government is likely to introduce more austerity measures to help meet its budget deficit targets.
卡布拉爾警告，不要誇大了葡萄牙經濟成長率的止跌回升，預料該國經濟未來會進一步下滑，因為政府很可能推動更多撙節措施，以達成縮減預算赤字的目標。

Still, Mr. Cabral said Portugal had reached “if not the end of the recession, at least the beginning of the end of the recession.”
但卡布拉爾說，葡萄牙「的經濟衰退就算尚未結束，至少也已進入了最後階段」。

Over all, after falling about 9 percent in 2008 at the onset of the financial crisis, Portugal’s olive oil exports have more than doubled since, according to Casa do Azeite, an industry body.
產業組織「葡萄牙橄欖油協會」統計，整體而言，葡國橄欖油出口在2008年金融危機之初下跌約9%，但那之後到現在已增加了一倍以上。

Manuel Costa Reis, an economist in Lisbon, said that Portugal’s export competitiveness was “without a doubt a very surprising and positive outcome of this crisis.”
里斯本的經濟學家科斯塔芮斯說，葡萄牙出口競爭力「毫無疑問是這場危機令人意外的正面結果」。

He said that the economic crisis had forced companies to start producing higher-quality products that can be marketed at a higher price. Manantiz’s oil shipment to Brazil, for instance, sold for nearly $26 a bottle, four times what is sells for in Portugal.
他說這場經濟危機迫使許多公司開始生產高價、高品質產品。例如，瑪納提斯賣到巴西的橄欖油，一瓶約合台幣780元，這是內銷價格的4倍。

Producers have emphasized more efficient production and pursued outside markets more aggressively. The value of Portugal’s furniture exports, for example, topped 1.3 billion last year, rising for a third consecutive year.
許多製造商強調更有效率的生產，且更積極尋求外銷。以葡萄牙家具外銷為例，去年總產值為13億美元，是連續第三年成長。

Mr. Costa Reis said, “I am positive that we have reached the bottom.”
科斯塔芮斯說：「我確信我們的經濟已經觸底反彈。」

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/29/business/global/portugal-looks-outward-in-bid-for-recovery.html

2013-09-17聯合報/G9版/UNITEDDAILYNEWS 馮克芸譯 原文參見紐時週報七版下