经济学人下载:跨国公司在中国 金刚VS金蛋

Business
商业报道

Multinationals in China
跨国公司在中国

Guardian warriors and golden eggs
金刚VS金蛋

The state's crackdowns on big firms are not all about bashing foreigners
中国政府制裁大公司，对象绝非仅是外国人

FOREIGN companies love to complain about doing business in China.
外国公司喜欢抱怨在中国做生意，游戏规则于其不利；

The rules of the game are rigged against them, they grouse, the locals are corrupt and the government is always turning the thumbscrews on them.
他们埋怨华人腐败，政府总是给其穿小鞋。

Amid such moans it is worth remembering that, for all the barriers that foreign multinationals face in China, it has welcomed them with open arms compared with the protectionism imposed by Japanand South Koreaat comparable stages in their economic development.
比起同期日本、韩国为发展经济而实行的贸易保护政策，这种牢骚便值得留念；即便跨国公司在中国面临着重重壁垒，毕竟中国还是张开手臂表示欢迎。

Nevertheless, the recent spate of high-profile crackdowns on international firms, and people associated with them,has prompted worries about a generalised anti-foreigner backlash.
然而，近期备受瞩目的中国制裁跨国公司浪潮让相关人员担心中国民众会产生强烈的排外情绪。

This week police in Shanghai formally arrested a British fraud investigator, Peter Humphrey, whom they had detained for six weeks as part of an inquiry into alleged bribery of doctors by foreign drug firms, along with his wife, also an investigator.
本周，上海警方正式逮捕一名英国公民—商业竞争情报人员彼特汉弗莱。为调查所谓的外国公司医疗行贿，汉弗莱已被拘留六周。同时被批捕的还有汉弗莱的妻子，后者也是一名竞争情报人员。

Mr Humphrey had done work for GlaxoSmithKline, a British drugs firm, four of whose Chinese managers were arrested last month.
汉弗莱曾在英国药品公司葛兰素史克工作，上月GSK四名中国区高管被捕。

Since these arrests other foreign drugmakers have come under investigation, including Sanofi and Eli Lilly.
此后，包括赛诺菲制药集团、礼来公司在内的其他外国制药公司均被中方调查，

All three firms say they will co-operate with the inquiries.
三家公司均表示愿意协助中方调查。

There have also been crackdowns on alleged price-fixing by foreign manufacturers of milk formula, and regulators are scrutinising the prices charged by foreign carmakers and their joint ventures with local firms.
此外，中方还在制裁外国公司垄断奶粉配方价格，监察部门正仔细审查外国汽车制造商提出的报价，并调查其同国内公司的合资公司。

Now foreign technology firms are worried that they may be next.
现在，外国科技公司担心自己会成为下一个调查对象。

Chinese nationalists were outraged when Huawei, a local telecoms-equipment giant, was blacklisted last year by American politicians on unsubstantiated allegations of spying.
当中国电信设备巨头华为被美国政客以未经核实的间谍活动为由列入黑名单时，中国国内的民族主义者勃然大怒。

But they grew apoplectic when Edward Snowden earlier this year revealed the extent of American spying on China.
但是，当爱德华斯诺登早些时候揭露美对中采取间谍活动的时候，他们更是怒不可遏。

Official media outlets have since been calling for the expulsion of Cisco and other leading American technology firms, dubbed the eight guardian warriors.
此后，中国官方媒体甚至呼吁驱逐思科及其他美国顶尖科技公司，并称此举为八大金刚。

This has made some observers nervous.
中国的上述举动也令其他公司感到不安，

Rhodium Group, a consultancy, gave warning that The implications for business prospects of foreign firms operating in the world's second largest economy are potentially far-reaching.
美国咨询公司荣鼎集团警告称：这对于外国公司在世界第二大经济体的前景影响深远。

So, is the new Chinese government really about to boot out the foreigners?
那么，中国政府真会驱逐外国公司吗？

Not likely.
看样子不会，

Cut through the official media's hype about greedy foreigners and it seems that a mix of motives is at work.
通过官方媒体对贪婪外国投资者的大肆宣扬不难看出其动机正在奏效。

Consumers are growing ever angrier about the cost of living in China's main cities, be that the soaring prices of homes, health care or safe food.
消费者对于中国主要城市的生活成本越发愤怒，或是物价飞涨、或是医疗保健、亦或是食品安全问题。

So it seems the government, which despite its tight grip on power does care about public opinion, is putting on a noisy show of trust busting.
因此，尽管政府攥紧权杖，但仍很在乎民意，打压跨国巨头的好戏也就随之上演。

Foreign firms are not the only targets:
外国公司并非此次行动唯一的打击对象：

recent action on alleged price-fixing by jewellers and the distillers of spirits, for example, nabbed only Chinese firms.
比如近期对珠宝商价格垄断及整风活动均是针对中国公司。

The antitrust regulator is now promising to get tough on telecoms and banking—two industries dominated by domestic firms.
反垄断监管机构正对电信公司及银行采取更严厉措施—两个由中国国内公司主宰的行业。

In contrast the drugs industry is dominated by foreign firms.
相比之下，药品行业则由外国公司左右。

Doctors are underpaid and thus highly susceptible to being incentivised to peddle pricey pills.
医生工资低，因此更容易被蛊惑兜售昂贵药物。

Most patients have to pay for their treatments, are angry at how much they cost and blame graft among health professionals.
大部分病人治疗都得付费，对高昂的医疗费用极为愤怒，随之将这种情绪转嫁到医护人员身上。

So by cracking down on alleged bribery by the foreign drug firms, the new Chinese government is also fulfilling another promise it made on taking office last year, to stamp out corruption.
因此，通过制裁国外药品公司行贿一事，新任中国国家主席也是在履行其去年上任时的另一项承诺，即反腐工作。

A crutch for lame ducks
跛子的拐杖

In many industries where local firms compete hard with foreign-backed ventures, the Chinese firms are struggling.
中国公司在许多行业面临着外国合资公司的激烈竞争，其发展举步维艰。

Often their products are perceived as lower-quality or unsafe.
中国公司的产品通常被视作低质、不安全，

The economic slowdown is making things worse for them.
经济增速放缓对他们来说更是雪上加霜。

Although regulators, by getting tough with the foreign firms first, are propping up some local lame ducks in the short term, they may be setting a precedent, and softening up public opinion, for when they eventually turn on the local firms.
尽管政府首先拿外国公司开刀，短期内仍旧支持国内公司，但其或许会有先例，最终会对国内公司下手以平息民愤。

As for the foreign technology firms, and the fear that a nationalist backlash will drive them away, it is true that some in officialdom and in the online Weibo-sphere are eager to see their departure.
对于外国科技公司来说，对中国民族主义强烈抵制的忧虑会让他们选择离去。事实确实如此，部分官员、及微博圈子的人迫切希望看到他们退出中国市场。

And there is some evidence of such firms losing a contract here or there.
有证据显示，此类公司在中国正相继失去合作机会。

However, it will be bizarre if China were to chase away these firms in the same way that America has seen off Huawei.
然而，如果中国采取美国对待华为的态度驱逐这些外国公司，那就有些匪夷所思了。

American technology firms are the world's best.
美国科技公司是世界上最好的，

Americadoes not need Chinese technology, whereas China most certainly needs access to American inventions.
美国不需要中国的技术，但中国肯定是需要渠道获得美国的发明。

In all, life for the many multinationals operating in China may get more difficult, with further cases of harassment by officials likely to emerge.
总而言之，对于众多在华经营的跨国公司来说，其生存环境或许会更加苦难，未来中方政府的进一步调查似乎不可避免。

But it seems unlikely, in most cases, that they will be forced out of the country.
但是，看样子大部分情况下他们是不会被驱逐出中国市场。

China's model of economic development depends, and has depended for years, on inviting in the world's best companies,and—legally or otherwise—benefiting from their intellectual property.
中国的经济发展模式需要依靠、过去许多年也一直在依靠吸引国外最好的公司，并合法或者非法从其知识产权中获益。

So why would China kill the goose that lays the golden egg?
因此，中国难道会杀了这只下金蛋的鹅？