與巴菲特共進午餐 神祕客一擲千金

The cost of the average restaurant meal has risen 2.7 per cent in the past year, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, but if that looks steep against an economywide inflation rate of 1.1 per cent, it is nothing compared to the rising cost of lunching with Warren Buffett.

根據美國勞工統計局(Bureau of Labor Statistics)的數據，餐館就餐成本在過去一年上漲了2.7%，這與整體經濟1.1%的通脹率相比也許顯得陡峭，但是相比同沃倫•巴菲特(Warren Buffett)共進午餐的扶搖直上的開銷，這點漲幅實在算不了什麼。

An anonymous bidder has paid $3,456,789 for a lunch date with the investment guru and founder of Berkshire Hathaway, some 47 per cent more than the winner of the charity auction last year.

一位匿名投標者支付了3456789美元與這位投資大師、伯克希爾哈撒韋公司(Berkshire Hathaway)創始人相約共進午餐，比這場慈善拍賣去年中標者的出價高出大約47%。

Mr Buffett will meet the winning bidder and up to seven friends for an intimate meal, in what has become an annual tradition that has netted more than $23m in total for the San Francisco charity, Glide.

巴菲特將與中標者和最多七個朋友一起進餐，這一年度傳統已經爲舊金山慈善機構Glide累計籌集2300多萬美元。

Mr Buffett’s late wife Susan used to be a volunteer at Glide, which offers meals, medical testing and other services to homeless and low-income people in the San Francisco’s Tenderloin district. Volunteers and supporters sang and cheered as the five-day auction moved into its final minutes on Friday night, and a late bid swelled the proceeds from $2.8m, where bidding had hovered for most of the day, to a final total that matched the all-time record from 2012.

巴菲特已故太太蘇珊曾經在Glide當義工，該組織爲舊金山田德隆區(Tenderloin district)的無家可歸者和低收入者提供膳食、醫療檢驗等服務。週五晚，在持續五天的拍賣進入最後幾分鐘之際，義工和支持者們歡呼並唱起歌來。當日大部分時間裏，出價一直徘徊在280萬美元上下，但拍賣結束前的出價遠遠超出這個水平，最終中標價格平了2012年創下的最高紀錄。

Reverend Cecil Williams, co-founder of Glide, said he was astonished by the result. “This is a banner year,” he said, “and this is truly a power lunch for the people.”

Glide共同創始人、牧師塞西爾•威廉斯(Cecil Williams)表示，這個結果讓他驚訝。“這是成果豐碩的一年，”他說，“這是真正爲人民的‘巨頭午餐會’。”

The auction is now in its 17th year, and the price of lunch with Mr Buffett began rising dramatically after it switched to the online site eBay in 2003, opening it to the investor’s followers all around the world.

這個拍賣活動已進入第17個年頭，自拍賣活動在2003年轉至eBay進行、讓巴菲特在世界各地的粉絲都能投標以來，與這位知名投資者共進午餐的價格開始急劇上漲。

Since that first online auction, the price of the average restaurant meal has risen 44 per cent, while Mr Buffett’s 2016 lunch is 1,282 per cent higher. Berkshire’s share price is up 200 per cent over the same 13-year period.

自第一次網上拍賣以來，餐館就餐的價格上漲44%，而巴菲特的2016年午餐價格高了1282%。伯克希爾的股價在這13年期間上升200%。

In some cases the experience of meeting Mr Buffett can be career-changing for lunch guests. Guy Spier wrote a book about how the advice and inspiration he received improved his approach to investing, for example.

在某些情況下，與巴菲特會晤的經歷可能改變午餐客人的職業道路。例如，蓋伊•施皮爾(Guy Spier)寫了一本書，介紹他得到的建議和靈感如何改進了他的投資方法。

And Ted Weschler, a Virginia hedge fund manager who won with bid of $2.6m in both 2010 and 2011, so impressed Mr Buffett that he offered him a job. Today, Mr Weschler runs a $9bn slice of Berkshire’s $128bn equity portfolio.

弗吉尼亞州對衝基金經理泰德•韋施勒(Ted Weschler)曾以260萬美元的出價在2010和2011年兩度中標。巴菲特對他的印象很深，以至於向他提供了一個職位。如今，韋施勒負責管理伯克希爾公司1280億美元股票投資組合中的90億美元。

Mr Buffett will meet the winning bidder and guests at the famed Smith & Wollensky steakhouse in New York City on a mutually agreed upon date.

巴菲特將和中標者及其客人在紐約知名牛排餐廳“史密斯與沃倫斯基”(Smith & Wollensky)一起進餐，具體日期有待雙方約定。