11月14日午间英语新闻：美发界的一股清流，日本“无声理发”服务走红

Covid-Inspired ‘Silent Cut’ Haircutting Service Gains Popularity in Japan

美发界的一股清流，日本“无声理发”服务走红

Devised by a Tokyo hair salon during the Covid-19 pandemic to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the ‘Silent Cut’ service is becoming increasingly popular in Japan. As a way of curbing the spread of the coronavirus during the Covid-19 pandemic, authorities in Japan started promoting “no conversation” or “less conversation” policies in schools, shops and supermarkets. Less talking meant fewer risks of spreading the virus via saliva droplets. One Tokyo salon decided to implement the ‘silent cut’ service and it proved so popular that others quickly followed suit.

在新冠疫情期间，日本东京一家美发沙龙为防止病毒传播而推出“无声理发”服务，该服务正在日本流行起来。出于疫情防控原因，日本政府呼吁人们在学校、商店和超市“不交谈”或“少交谈”。减少交谈意味着降低飞沫传播病毒的风险。东京一家理发店决定推出“无声理发”服务，事实证明，这项服务非常受欢迎，于是其他沙龙纷纷效仿。

“It’s great…! I’ve been waiting for this service for 20 years. Because chatting is so depressing, I only get a haircut every 3 years,” one person wrote about the silent cut service.“I’m saved because the conversation with the hairdresser can be troublesome,” someone else commented. A recent survey revealed that over 70 percent of respondents preferred the silent experience, with the most common explanations being that they found it more relaxing, as they were able to rest instead of spending what little energy they had on hearing unwanted information and making small talk. As it turns out, hairstylists prefer the silent cut as well, with many claiming that they were taught to chat up clients in their apprenticeship. 

有人评价无声理发服务称：“太棒了……！我已经等了20年了。因为聊天太压抑了，我每3年才剪一次头发。”还有人称：“我得救了，因为和理发师聊天很烦。”一项最新调查显示，超过70%的受访者更喜欢这种安静服务的体验，主要原因是他们认为这样理发时可以放松休息，而不用听不想听的信息或花精力闲聊。事实证明，发型师也更喜欢无声的服务，许多发型师表示，他们在学徒期间需要学习如何与客人搭讪。

重点词汇：

1、devise

英/dɪˈvaɪz/
美/dɪˈvaɪz/
v.设计，发明；<法律>（通过遗嘱）遗赠（不动产）
n.<法律>（遗嘱中）遗赠不动产的条款

2、curb
英/kɜːb/
美/kɜːrb/
v.控制，抑制；勒住（马）
n.控制，抑制；<美>路缘，马路牙子；（马的跗关节后部因扭伤韧带引起的）硬瘤

3、saliva
英/səˈlaɪvə/
美/səˈlaɪvə/
n.唾液，涎

4、droplet
英/ˈdrɒplət/
美/ˈdrɑːplət/
n.小滴，微滴

5、apprenticeship
英/əˈprentɪʃɪp/
美/əˈprentɪʃɪp/
n.学徒期；学徒身份

Foreign trade growth expected to be stable

海关总署：我国外贸继续保持平稳运行

The growth of China's foreign trade is expected to become stable this year, given the robust performance during the January-October period, which has laid a solid foundation, trade watchers said on Monday. The country's foreign trade surged 9.5 percent year-on-year to 34.6 trillion yuan ($4.7 trillion) in the first 10 months of 2022, while its trade surplus jumped 46.7 percent year-on-year to 4.8 trillion yuan, according to the General Administration of Customs.

贸易观察人士11月7日表示，鉴于1月至10月期间的强劲表现奠定了坚实的基础，今年中国外贸增长有望保持稳定。根据海关总署发布的数据，2022年前10个月，我国货物贸易进出口总值34.62万亿元，同比增长9.5%，贸易顺差4.8万亿元，扩大46.7%。

Judging from the sector's performance so far this year, and given the resilience of the country's industrial and supply chains, China is likely to see stable growth of foreign trade and a high trade surplus this year, said Wei Jianguo, vice-chairman of Beijing-based China Center for International Economic Exchanges. "Despite the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the United States' interest rate hike, Chinese exporters, backed by the government's supportive measures and new foreign trade formats such as cross-border e-commerce business, have been busy upgrading their product structure this year," he said, adding the country's export impetus is no longer dominated by products with low industrial added value.

中国国际经济交流中心副理事长魏建国表示，从今年外贸的表现来看，考虑到中国产业链和供应链的韧性，中国今年的对外贸易将稳定增长，并出现较高的贸易顺差。他说：“尽管受俄乌冲突和美国加息的影响，但在政府的支持措施和跨境电商等新的外贸业态的支持下，中国出口商今年一直忙于升级产品结构。”他补充说，中国的出口贸易不再由工业附加值低的产品推动。

Li Kuiwen, director-general of the GAC statistics and analysis department, also held that opinion and said that China's exports of electric vehicles doubled on a yearly basis from January to October, while the exports of mechanical and electrical products such as lithium batteries and solar cells soared by about 80 percent year-on-year. China's high-tech exports rose from $474.35 billion in 2010 to $942.31 billion in 2021, up by 98.65 percent, according to the World Bank database. This indicates China's manufacturing sector has not only withstood the test of the market amid global supply chain disruptions, but also continuously bolstered its strength driven by the market forces.

海关总署统计分析司司长李魁文也持同样观点，他表示，从1月到10月，中国电动载人汽车出口翻倍，锂电池、太阳能电池等机电产品出口增长八成左右。根据世界银行的数据库，中国高科技产品出口从2010年的4743.5亿美元增长到2021年的9423.1亿美元，增长了98.65%。这表明，在全球供应链受到影响的情况下，中国制造业不仅经受住了市场的考验，而且在市场力量的推动下不断增强实力。

重点词汇：
1、robust
英/rəʊˈbʌst/
美/roʊˈbʌst/
adj.强健的，强壮的；（系统或组织）稳固的，健全的；（物体）结实的，坚固的；（观点等）强烈的，坚定的；（食物或饮料）味浓的，醇厚的；特大的；粗野的，粗鲁的

2、surplus
英/ˈsɜːpləs/
美/ˈsɜːrplʌs/
n.过剩，剩余，过剩量；盈余，顺差；超净资产
adj.过剩的，剩余的，多余的；（商店）出售剩余（或过时的）军用品的
v.甩卖，变卖

3、impetus 
英/ˈɪmpɪtəs/
美/ˈɪmpɪtəs/
n.动力，促进；动量，冲力

4、bolster
英/ˈbəʊlstə(r)/
美/ˈboʊlstər/
v.增强，激励；巩固（地位），加强；改善，改进；给（座位）加软垫
n.长枕，垫枕；承梁（用于支撑或减少摩擦）；托木；（削砖用的）凿刀