1月17日午间英语新闻：最高可判3年！韩国国会通过禁食狗肉相关法案

China's foreign trade up 0.2% in 2023
2023年外贸“成绩单”出炉：货物贸易进出口同比增长0.2%

China's annual foreign trade posted better-than-anticipated performance and registered 41.76 trillion yuan ($5.82 trillion) in 2023, up 0.2 percent year-on-year, the General Administration of Customs said on Friday.
海关总署1月12日称，2023年我国货物贸易进出口总值41.76万亿元，同比增长0.2%，表现好于预期。

In a breakdown, exports grew 0.6 percent year-on-year to 23.77 trillion yuan last year, while imports edged down 0.3 percent year-on-year to 17.99 trillion yuan, said Wang Lingjun, vice-minister of the administration, at a news conference.
海关总署副署长王令浚在新闻发布会上表示，2023年我国货物贸易出口23.77万亿元，增长0.6%；进口17.99万亿元，下降0.3%。

Foreign trade has shown overall stability and picked up markedly in the fourth quarter. In particular, total imports and exports in December scored 3.81 trillion yuan, reaching a record monthly high, Wang said.
王令浚表示，外贸运行总体平稳，四季度向好态势明显。尤其是12月份进出口达到了3.81万亿元，这是一个月度规模的历史新高。

The country has fostered a diverse range of export drivers, Wang said, citing the annual electro-mechanical product shipments, which increased by 2.9 percent over the previous year to 13.92 trillion yuan, and accounted for 58.6 percent of total exports.
王令浚指出，我国已经培育出了多样化的出口动能。据介绍，2023年我国出口机电产品13.92万亿元，增长2.9%，占出口总值的58.6%。

Moreover, exports of the "new three", namely electric passenger vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and solar cells, amounted to 1.06 trillion yuan in 2023, posting a year-on-year increase of 29.9 percent, Wang added.
其中，电动载人汽车、锂电池和太阳能电池等“新三样”产品合计出口1.06万亿元，同比增长29.9%。

Trade kept growing with diverse trading partners. Last year, China's trade with economies involved in the Belt and Road Initiative climbed 2.8 percent year-on-year to 19.47 trillion yuan, accounting for 46.6 percent of China's total foreign trade, Wang said.
贸易伙伴多元共进。王令浚介绍，2023年，我国对共建“一带一路”国家进出口19.47万亿元，增长2.8%，占进出口总值的46.6%。

China's trade with the European Union and the US rebounded in the fourth quarter, and hit 5.51 trillion yuan and 4.67 trillion yuan, respectively, which takes up 13.2 percent and 11.2 percent of China's total foreign trade, Wang said.
王令浚介绍，第四季度我国对欧盟、美国进出口回暖，全年分别进出口5.51万亿、4.67万亿元，分别占进出口总值的13.2%和11.2%。

South Korea passes law banning dog meat trade
最高可判3年！韩国国会通过禁食狗肉相关法案

South Korea has passed a new law, which aims to end the slaughter and selling of dogs for meat by 2027. The law aims to end the centuries-old practice of eating dog meat. Dog meat has fallen out of favor with diners over the past few decades. Young people especially shun it. Under the law, raising or slaughtering dogs for consumption will be banned, as will distributing or selling dog meat. Those found guilty of doing so could be sent to jail.
韩国通过了一项新法律，旨在到2027年结束屠宰和售卖狗肉的行为。此举意味着将终结长达数百年食用狗肉的传统。过去几十年来，狗肉已不再受食客青睐。年轻人尤其避而远之。根据该法律，饲养或屠宰供食用的狗将被禁止，分销或出售狗肉也将被禁止。违反者将面临法律制裁，可能被判入狱。

Those butchering dogs could face up to three years in prison, while those who raise dogs for meat or sell dog meat could serve a maximum of two years. However, the consumption of dog meat itself will not be illegal.
屠宰狗的人可能面临最高长达三年的监禁，而肉狗饲养者或出售狗肉的人可能面临最高两年的监禁。然而，食用狗肉本身并不违法。

The new legislation will go into effect in three years' time, giving farmers and restaurant owners time to find alternative sources of employment and income. They will have to submit a plan to local authorities to phase out their businesses.
新立法将于三年后生效，给了韩国农民和餐馆老板寻找其他就业和收入来源的时间。他们将不得不向当地政府提交一份逐步淘汰其业务的计划。

The government has promised to fully support dog meat farmers, butchers and restaurant owners, whose businesses will be forced to close, though the details of what compensation will be offered have yet to be worked through.
韩国政府已承诺将全力支持那些业务被迫关闭的狗肉养殖户、屠夫和餐馆老板，但具体补偿细节尚未确定。

According to government statistics, South Korea had around 1,600 dog meat restaurants and 1,150 dog farms in 2023. Dog meat stew, called "boshintang", is considered a delicacy among some older South Koreans, but the meat is no longer popular with young people.
据政府统计，2023年韩国约有1600家狗肉餐馆和1150家养狗场。被称为“补身汤”的炖狗肉，在一些年长的韩国人眼中是一种美味佳肴，但如今在年轻人中已不再流行。

According to a Gallup poll last year, only 8% of people said they had tried dog meat in the past 12 months, down from 27% in 2015. Less than a fifth of those polled said they supported the consumption of the meat.
根据盖洛普去年的一项民意调查，只有8%的人表示他们在过去12个月内吃过狗肉，低于2015年的27%。只有不到五分之一的受访者表示支持食用狗肉。

Dog meat farmers had campaigned against the ban. They argued that, given the declining popularity among young people, the practice should be allowed to die out naturally over time. Many farmers and restaurateurs are elderly and said it would be difficult for them to switch livelihoods so late in life.
肉狗饲养者曾发起活动反对这一禁令。他们认为，鉴于狗肉在年轻人中的受欢迎程度日益下降，应让这一行业随时间自然消亡。许多饲养者和餐馆老板都是老年人，他们表示，晚年转换生计将非常困难。

One dog farmer, Joo Yeong-bong, told the BBC the industry was in despair. "In 10 years, the industry would have disappeared. We're in our 60s and 70s and now we have no choice but to lose our livelihoods", he said, adding that this was "an infringement of people's freedom to eat what they like".
肉狗饲养者朱永邦（音译）在接受英国广播公司采访时表示，该行业已陷入绝境。他表示：“再过10年，这个行业将会消失。我们都六七十岁了，现在除了失去生计别无选择"，并补充说，这是“侵犯人们自由选择食物的权利”。

重点词汇：
slaughter
英 /ˈslɔːtə(r)/
美 /ˈslɔːtər/
n.（对动物的）屠宰；（对人的）屠杀；<非正式>彻底击败，一边倒的比赛
v.宰杀（动物）；屠杀，杀戮；<非正式>（在体育比赛中）使惨败；<非正式>严厉批评

maximum
英 /ˈmæksɪməm/
美 /ˈmæksɪməm/
adj. 最大限度的；（数量）极大的，极多的
n. 最大量，最大限度
adv. 最多，充其量

delicacy 
英 /ˈdelɪkəsi/
美 /ˈdelɪkəsi/
n. 美味，佳肴；脆弱，娇嫩；微妙，棘手；审慎，体贴；（结构的）精巧，精致