Moscow’s Towering Financial Ghost Town Seeks Tenants
經濟差 俄京商辦租不掉
By Andrew E. Kramer

MOSCOW – In the coveted corner office, a bearded man in sweatpants scrambled eggs at a kitchenette, taking in the beauty of the city lights twinkling far below. Two other men played video games on an Xbox. In place of cubicles, there are bunk beds.
在這令人神往的邊間辦公室，一個留鬍子、穿運動褲的男人在小廚房裡炒蛋，一邊欣賞底下閃爍的莫斯科燈海，另外兩個男人用Xbox打電動，幾張雙層床取代了辦公室小隔間。

High Level Hostel, one of the newest tenants in the financial district here known as Moscow City, sits on prime real estate on the 43rd floor of a multimillion-dollar tower.
「高樓青年旅社」是名為「莫斯科城」的金融區最新房客之一，位在精華地段價值數百萬美元高樓的四十三樓。

“We thought, ‘why not open a hostel in a skyscraper?’ ” said Roman Drozdenko, the 25-year-old owner.
25歲的老闆德羅茲登科說：「我們想，『為何不在摩天大樓裡開一家青年旅社？』」

Moscow’s skyscraper district, formally the Moscow International Business Center, reflects the broader problems in the Russian economy, which is predicted to be in recession in 2015. The country, facing financial sanctions and dominated by state-run companies, has no need for vast office spaces for stock traders and bankers.
莫斯科這個摩天大樓林立的區域正式名稱是「莫斯科國際商務中心」，它的現況反映俄國經濟的問題。外界預料2015年俄國經濟會陷入衰退。俄國面臨金融制裁而且國營企業占多數，不需要可讓股票交易員和銀行主管進駐的寬闊辦公空間。

The entire $12 bullion site, some 60 hectares that now includes the tallest building in Europe, Mercury City Tower, had a vacancy rate of 32 percent at the end of October, according to Cushman & Wakefield, the real estate consultancy. The rate is projected to rise above 50 percent next year when new buildings open.
「莫斯科城」市值120億美元，面積約60公頃，目前包含歐洲最高建築「水星城市大樓」，高緯環球房地產顧問公司資料顯示，10月底時，整片區域空租率為32%，預計明年一些新大樓啟用後會超過50%。

“Russians have a great tradition of building things they don’t need,” Sergei Petrov, an office worker in one of the towers.
在其中一棟大樓上班的佩特羅夫說：「俄國人有個偉大傳統，就是蓋不需要的房子。」

Moscow City was envisioned as a hub of emerging market finance, a testament to Russia’s growing international influence. For a time, the idea was not improbable: From 2000 to 2007, the Russian economy grew on average 7 percent a year.
「莫斯科城」的願景是成為新興市場金融中心，這見證了俄國逐漸增強的國際影響力。這個構想曾經並非遙不可及：從2000年到2007年，俄國經濟每年平均成長7%。

One tower, called Evolution, twists in a DNA-evoking double helix. The spires of Federation Towers resemble billowing sails, evoking Russia sailing into a capitalist future. Federation Tower East will rise 95 stories to a height of 373 meters, surpassing its still mostly empty neighbor Mercury City Tower as the tallest building in Europe.
一棟名為「進化」的大樓外形扭曲成像DNA的雙螺旋狀。「聯邦大樓」的尖塔狀似揚起的帆，召喚俄國航向資本主義的未來。「聯邦大樓東座」將拔地而起95層、高373公尺，超越隔鄰仍然大抵空著的「水星城市大樓」，成為歐洲最高樓。

Eight skyscrapers are finished. Eight others are under construction, and two more are planned.
有八棟摩天樓已完工，八棟正在蓋，另有兩棟在規劃中。

Western sanctions have taken aim at Russia’s largest state financial institutions, Sberbank and VTB, which both own towers or floor space in Moscow City. The two banks now have a limited ability to issue debt on global markets, limiting their growth options.
西方國家的制裁瞄準俄國最大國營金融機構「俄羅斯聯邦儲蓄銀行」和「俄羅斯外貿銀行」，二者都在莫斯科城有大樓或辦公室，目前對全球市場的發債能力都受限，發展機會減少。

The sanctions are expected to trim about 1 percentage point of growth from Russia’s gross domestic product this year.
制裁措施預計會讓俄國今年國內生產毛額（GDP）成長率減少約一個百分點。

Even without sanctions, problems have been stacking up. Rising inflation, falling oil prices, and a tumbling ruble have left Russia near recession.
即使俄國未遭制裁，仍然問題重重，通膨升、油價跌、盧布重貶都讓俄國幾近衰退。

The government also accounts for an outsize proportion of the economy, leaving scant jobs for the bankers, lawyers and traders for whom Moscow City was built. In Russia, 81 percent of the shares of the top 10 companies are owned by the same entity, the state, compared with 11 in Germany, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
而且政府在經濟體系中分量過重，留給銀行高階主管、律師和證券交易員的職缺很少，莫斯科城卻是為這些人而建。經濟合作發展組織資料顯示，俄國前十大公司81%股份由同一實體－國家所擁有，在德國僅11%。

Moscow City is shifting tactics to fill the space. Various nonfinancial ventures are renting space. One company sells Cambodian citizenship to Russians wanting a second passport. A culinary school is opening. Many multinationals have rented space. IBM, General Electric, KPMG, General Motors, Hyundai, Energizer and Japan Tobacco International are all tenants.
莫斯科城正在改變策略以填滿空間。各種非金融業公司正在租用空間。有一家公司把柬埔寨公民身分賣給想要第二本護照的俄國人。一間烹飪學校剛開學。許多跨國公司租下辦公室，包括國際商業機器（IBM）、奇異、KPMG、通用汽車、現代、勁量和傑太日煙國際。

Prices, too, are falling. Mr. Drozdenko, the hostel owner, said a real estate agent offered him the space for about $8,000 a month for 148 square meters.
房價也在下滑。青年旅社老闆德羅茲登科說，仲介把這148平方公尺（約45坪）租給他，月租約8000美元。

Empire Tower, the skyscraper where High Level hostel sits, is still largely empty two years after opening. High Level Hostel opened in September with 24 beds, with prices starting at $25.50 in a six-person room, including a breakfast of toast, porridge or muesli.
青年旅社所在「帝國大廈」啟用兩年仍泰半空著。旅社9月開張，房價從六人房25.5美元起跳，含吐司、麥片粥或燕麥多榖片早餐。

The hostel manager, Leonid L. Fedotov, 19, recalled backpacking guests from Holland named Ron and Eve. “It was really cool because Ron and I played guitar in the evening,” he said, as they gazed out at the sea of lights of Moscow below.
19歲的旅社經理費多托夫想起荷蘭背包客榮恩和伊芙，「榮恩晚上跟我一起玩吉他，真的很酷」，他一邊說，他們一邊望向底下的莫斯科燈海。

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/26/realestate/commercial/in-moscow-a-financial-district-that-is-anything-but.html

2014-12-16聯合報/G9版/UNITED DAILY NEWS 李京倫譯 原文參見紐時週報八版上