经济学人171:苹果vs美孚

 　　American business

　　美国商业
　　Big Apple v Big Oil
　　苹果vs美孚
　　Apple briefly 1 becomes the world’s largest public company
　　苹果一度成为世界第一大市值公司
　　Aug 13th 2011 | SAN FRANCISCO| from the print edition
　　BY ANY standards it is a remarkable 2 achievement. In the space of 14 years, Apple has transformed itself from a computer firm on the brink 3 of bankruptcy 4 into a stockmarket superstar. On August 9th its market capitalisation surpassed that of Exxon Mobil, making it the world’s largest public company. Not for long: by the end of the day’s trading, the tech giant was $1 billion smaller than the oil giant: $347 billion to $348 billion. But Exxon’s lead is fragile. If the oil price falls further, Apple will surely outstrip 5 it.
　　无论从哪个角度看，这都是引人注目的成就。在14年的时间里，苹果从一个面临倒闭的电脑公司成功转型，成为证券市场的超级明星。在8月9日其市值超过了埃克森美孚，成为世界上第一大上市公司。但不久在当日收盘时，科技巨头苹果的市值仅以10亿美元低于石油大亨：分别是3470亿美元和3480亿美元。但埃克森的领先不堪一击，如果油价继续下跌，苹果必然会超过。
　　Oil remains 6 a vital raw material, and Exxon can extract it from difficult places more efficiently 7 than any other firm. But Apple’s rise reflects the growing influence of the digital industry, and the way that industry has changed. It used to be dominated by companies such as IBM and Microsoft, which made their billions selling software and services to corporations. Apple has leap-frogged both of them by delighting consumers.
　　石油一直都是重要的原材料，埃克森美孚能够比其他公司更高效地从恶劣环境中提炼出石油。但苹果的崛起反映了数字产业与日俱增的影响力，以及它所带来的改变。过去的数字产业是IBM和微软公司的天下，它们以出售软件和服务获得了巨大的赢利。凭着用户好评，苹果已跃升至两家公司之前。
　　Find out how much of an Apple iPhone is actually a Samsung with our "teardown" infographic
　　根据拆机资料图我们来看看一部苹果手机实际有多少是三星制造。
　　En route, it has made computers cool. Trendy folk around the world not only snap up the latest gizmos displayed in Apple’s alluring 8 stores. They also show them off to their friends. Every few months, Apple stages the technology equivalent of a fashion show, where Steve Jobs, its boss, teasingly unveils the latest collection of iPhones and iPads. (The next version of the iPhone is eagerly expected in the autumn.) Exxon’s technology is just as impressive, but harder to wear around your neck. Apple is fantastically profitable in part because it can charge far more than its competitors for quite similar products. Exxon’s petrol costs the same as anyone else’s.
　　在发展的道路上，苹果的电脑也做得很漂亮。来自世界各地的潮人们不仅在苹果热门商店里抢购最新上架的设备，也向朋友们炫耀。每几个月，苹果都会举办科技展，同时也是时尚秀，在会上董事长史蒂夫乔布斯（Steve Jobs）都会开玩笑地展示iPhone和iPad的最新产品。（举世瞩目的苹果下一代手机有望在秋季上市。）埃克森的技术确实令人赞叹，但其产品却不能向苹果一样随身携带。苹果公司的利润高的惊人，因为作为类似的产品，苹果的售价远高于竞争对手。而埃克森公司的石油却和其他公司售价相当。
　　Investors 9 are breezily bullish about Apple’s business model. Last month the firm revealed that in its latest quarter its profits had more than doubled, to $7.3 billion, while its revenues rose by 82%, to $28.6 billion. The biggest cloud on the horizon is Mr Jobs’s health; he has been on medical leave since January. Apple also faces stiff competition from Google’s Android operating system, and various legal battles—on August 9th it won an injunction to stop Samsung selling its Galaxy 10 tablet, which resembles an iPad, in Europe. Many people are betting that Apple will continue to pump out profits indefinitely. But what is cool today may look clunky tomorrow.
　　投资者都对苹果的商业模式充满了信心。上个月公司透露，上一季度利润翻了一倍多，达到73亿美元。同时营业收入增长了82%，达到286亿美元。现在公司最大的问题是有关乔布斯的健康状况，从1月起他一直在病休中。苹果同时还要面对谷歌安卓操作系统这一劲敌，还有一些法律诉讼——在8月9日苹果赢得了对三星Galaxy平板电脑（与苹果iPad相似）在欧洲销售的禁止令。许多人认为苹果很可能会继续获取巨大赢利，但以后的事谁也说不准，拭目以待。