G20財長會議或面臨諸多爭議性問題

As financial officials from the Group of 20 economies prepare to meet in Australia this weekend, we take a look at some of the contentious issues that form a backdrop to the meeting.

二十國集團(Group of 20, 簡稱G20)財長準備本週末在澳大利亞舉行會議，本文列出了形成此次會議整體背景的一些爭論性問題。

Who's to blame for capital flight: A growing number of emerging markets are blaming the West for destabilizing capital flows. They argue the U.S.'s move this year to normalize its unorthodox easy money policies is leading to big outflows from their economies as investors look to benefit from rising U.S. yields.

資本逃離誰之過：越來越多的新興市場將資本流動不穩定歸咎於西方國家，他們認爲美國今年推進貨幣政策正常化的舉動是導致大量資金流出新興市場的原因所在，因爲這種情況下投資者紛紛從上漲的美國收益率中尋求獲益。

But there's a backlash from the West, where officials argue emerging markets should get their own houses in order before casting blame, including making progress with reforms aimed at bolstering their economies. The Federal Reserve, for its part, doesn't accept recent emerging market turmoil is due to its actions.

不過西方國家也作出了激烈反駁，有官員認爲新興市場應當在追究外部責任之前管好自己的事情，這其中包括推進旨在鞏固新興市場本地經濟的改革舉措。就美國聯邦儲備委員會(Federal Reserve, 簡稱：美聯儲)本身而言，其並不接受有關近期新興市場震盪緣起美聯儲政策行動的說法。

The International Monetary Fund, in a paper produced for the G20 meeting, urges caution on all sides. Industrialized nations should keep loose monetary policies in place at a time of fragile global growth, the fund says. Some emerging markets might need to raise interest rates further to get inflation and debt under control after years of easy-money policies, it added.

國際貨幣基金組織(International Monetary Fund, 簡稱IMF)在爲G20會議準備的報告中敦促各方謹慎行事。IMF稱，發達國家應在全球經濟增長脆弱的情況下保持寬鬆貨幣政策，而一些新興市場在持續實施了多年寬鬆貨幣政策之後可能需要進一步加息以控制通脹和債務水平。

Better central bank coordination: A proposal that's gaining traction is that the world's central banks need to better coordinate action to ensure stability. The IMF, in its paper, called for better coordination of monetary policy.

各國央行之間加強協作：有關全球央行需加強協作以確保穩定的提議已越來越得到認同。IMF在報告中呼籲全球在貨幣政策方面加強協作。

India's central bank governor, a former IMF chief economist, has been vocal on the need for more cooperation. The IMF last year proposed in a paper that it take on such a coordinating role.

印度央行行長、IMF前首席經濟學家呼籲各方增進協作。IMF去年在一份報告中提議其將發揮類似協調作用。

In reality, the talk of such cooperation remains vague and it's going to be very difficult to find common ground. In part, this is because central banks have mandates to protect specific economies. Janet Yellen, the Fed chairwoman, said in testimony this month that she doesn't see emerging-market turmoil as a threat to the U.S. economic outlook. As the U.S. economy recovers, the Fed is likely to wind down its bond-buying program, even if this causes jitters in developing nations.

實際上，有關全球增進協作的探討依然含糊不清，而且也將很難達成共識，這其中部分原因在於各央行都肩負着維護自己經濟體的職責。美聯儲主席耶倫(Yellen)本月在發表證詞時表示，她不認爲新興市場震盪對美國經濟前景構成威脅。隨着美國經濟復甦，美聯儲可能會縮減債券購買計劃，即便此舉會引發發展中國家的不安情緒。

U.S.-German tension: U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew has been on a mission to highlight that trade-dependent Germany should do more to invest and boost domestic demand. The eurozone's economy, although no longer in recession, remains anemic with a rising risk of deflation setting in. The U.S. thinks Germany, Europe's largest economy, should do more to give a kick to demand, helping the zone's weaker exporters.

美國與德國之間的緊張關係：美國財政部長雅各布•盧(Jacob Lew)肩負的一項使命就是強調以貿易爲經濟支柱的德國應該採取更多行動擴大投資並提振國內需求。目前，歐元區經濟雖已擺脫衰退，但仍增長乏力，出現通貨緊縮的風險不斷上升。在美國看來，作爲歐洲最大經濟體的德國應該採取更多行動提振需求，扶持歐元區日漸衰弱的出口業。

'We've been clear that in Europe, we think that the countries that have surpluses could do more to stimulate growth, stimulate demand. Europe needs demand. The world needs more demand,' Mr. Lew said last week.

雅各布•盧上週表示：“我們清楚地看到了歐洲的這一問題，我們認爲那些擁有順差的國家可以採取更多措施刺激經濟增長和需求；歐洲需要市場需求，世界也需要更多市場需求。”

Germany has brushed off the criticism, arguing that domestic demand is driving its economy.

德國並不接受這樣的批評，而且反駁說國內需求正在推動德國經濟。

International trade: The U.S. will have some explaining to do on trade. The Obama administration has been pushing regional trade deals, one with the European Union and another with Asia-Pacific nations, as a way to bring down tariffs. Both agreements were endangered last month when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid broke publicly with the White House, saying he opposed legislation aimed at smoothing the passage of free-trade agreements.

國際貿易問題：美國將要在貿易問題上進行一些解釋。爲降低關稅，奧巴馬(Obama)政府一直在爭取達成地區貿易協議，其中一份是與歐盟(European Union)，另一份是與亞太國家。但就在上個月，這兩份協議都有無法達成的危險，因爲美國參議院多數黨領袖裏德(Harry Reid)公開表露了與白宮的分歧。裏德說，他反對旨在幫助自由貿易協定順利獲得通過的立法。

An anti-free-trade atmosphere at home might make it difficult for the U.S. to make concessions needed to move the talks forward. The U.S. argues countries like Japan need to do more to lower tariffs on agriculture.

美國國內反對自由貿易協定的氛圍可能會使美國很難作出推動相關談判所需的讓步。美國表示，日本等國家需要採取更多行動降低農產品關稅。

The next round of discussions on the Asia-Pacific pact take place in Singapore from this weekend. But, for now, there's little sign of forward movement in efforts to further liberalize global trade.

從本週末開始，有關亞太自由貿易協定的新一輪談判將在新加坡舉行。但就目前看來，還沒有跡象表明各方爲進一步促進全球貿易自由化付出了更多努力。