劳斯莱斯发动机：蓝天下的巨亏（讲解版）

原文

Rolls with the punches: Rolls-Royce

Today the world’s second-largest enginemaker publishes its results for 2016. Bad news is expected, due to losses on its currency hedges on the weak pound. The past few years have been hard going, with five profit warnings in 2014 and 2015 as turbulence hit all the company’s businesses simultaneously. In November it revealed that dodgy accounting practices had for years been flattering the performance of its biggest division, making jetliner engines. In 2015 it recorded £800m ($1bn) in profits; in 2016 it probably lost money. Worse was Rolls’s admission in January that it had for decades clinched sales with bribes to officials: money, hotel stays and even, perhaps predictably, a posh Rolls-Royce car. It coughed up £671m to settle allegations with American, British and Brazilian regulators—Britain’s largest-ever penalty imposed on a firm for criminal conduct. But with skeletons now out the closet, investors are hoping that underlying profits will gain altitude.

翻译

罗罗公司：在打击中困难前行

今天，世界上第二大发动机制造商将公布其2016年报。由于该公司受英镑疲软拖累，在外汇对冲方面蒙受损失，预计不会有什么好消息。过去数年该公司发展艰难，2014和2015年五度发布盈利警告，同一时间公司所有业务都遭遇动荡。去年十一月，公司披露称，其在过去书年中采取了隐瞒性的会计操作，以粉饰其生产喷气式客机发动机的最大部门。2015年，该公司录得8亿英镑利润；2016年该公司多半要亏本。更糟糕的是，罗罗公司已在一月承认，该公司数十年来都将销售和对官员的行贿挂钩，行贿手段包括：送钱、住酒店，甚至（你可能也能想得到）一辆时髦的劳斯莱斯汽车。该公司为此不得不缴纳6.71亿英镑给美国、英国和巴西监管者，以摆平对其指控——这笔金额创下了英国历史上针对一家公司刑事犯罪行为的最大罚款。不过，既然家丑都已经全都被揭了出来，投资者希望该公司的潜在利润终究可以浮出水面。

讲义

Section 1

Rolls with the punches: Rolls-Royce

词汇

Rolls-Royce：罗罗公司，即世界顶级超豪华轿车厂商劳斯莱斯（Rolls-Royce），于1906年成立于英国，公司创始人为Frederick Henry Royce（亨利·莱斯）和Charles Stewart Rolls（查理·劳斯）。除了制造汽车，劳斯莱斯还涉足飞机发动机制造领域，它也是一家优秀的发动机制造商，世界著名的空客飞机部分型号用的就是劳斯莱斯的发动机。2003年劳斯莱斯汽车公司被宝马（BMW）接手。

punch [pʌn(t)ʃ] v. 用拳猛击 n. 一拳

roll [rəʊl] v. 卷；滚动

Section 2

Today the world’s second-largest enginemaker publishes its results for 2016. Bad news is expected, due to losses on its currency hedges on the weak pound. The past few years have been hard going, with five profit warnings in 2014 and 2015 as turbulence hit all the company’s businesses simultaneously.

词汇

publish v. 发布；出版

sth is expected 预期某事将……

due to由于

currency hedges: 外汇对冲

currency ['kʌr(ə)nsɪ] n. 货币

hedge [hedʒ] v. 用树篱笆围住

profit ['prɒfɪt] n. 利润；利益

profit warning: 盈利警告

turbulence ['tɜːbjʊl(ə)ns] n.不稳定的气流；动荡

simultaneously [,sɪml'teɪnɪəslɪ] adv. at the same time 同时

Section 3

In November it revealed that dodgy accounting practices had for years been flattering the performance of its biggest division, making jetliner engines. In 2015 it recorded £800m ($1bn) in profits; in 2016 it probably lost money. Worse was Rolls’s admission in January that it had for decades clinched sales with bribes to officials: money, hotel stays and even, perhaps predictably, a posh Rolls-Royce car.

词汇

dodgy ['dɒdʒɪ] adj. 躲躲闪闪的；逃避的

dodge [dɒdʒ] v. 躲避，避开

accounting practice会计操作

flatter ['flætə] v.奉承；吹捧

performance [pə'fɔːm(ə)ns] n. 业绩;表演

division [dɪ'vɪʒ(ə)n] n. 分割；部门；除以

divide v. 分开

jetliner ['dʒetlaɪnə] n.喷气式客机

clinch [klɪn(t)ʃ] v. 把……联系起来

cinch A with B 连接A和B

decade ['dekeɪd] n.十年

predictably [pri'diktəbli] adv. 可预言地

predict＝foresee v.预测

posh [pɒʃ] adj. fashionable 时髦的；漂亮的

Section 4

It coughed up £671m to settle allegations with American, British and Brazilian regulators—Britain’s largest-ever penalty imposed on a firm for criminal conduct. But with skeletons now out the closet, investors are hoping that underlying profits will gain altitude.

词汇

cough [kɒf] v.咳嗽

cough up勉强支付

settle ['set(ə)l] v.摆平；解决

allegation [ælɪ'geɪʃ(ə)n] n. 指控

penalty ['pen(ə)ltɪ] n. 罚款，处罚

impose [ɪm'pəʊz] v. exert 施加

criminal conduct 犯罪行为

skeleton in the closet/cupboard: 不可告人的家丑

underlying [ʌndə'laɪɪŋ] adj. 潜在的；在下面的

altitude ['æltɪtjuːd] n. 高度；海拔

gain altitude 浮出水面