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リーマン1年 金融再生に教訓を生かせ

The Yomiuri Shimbun(Sep. 15, 2009)
Apply lessons learned from Lehman Shock
リーマン1年 金融再生に教訓を生かせ(9月15日付・読売社説)

The global financial crisis that originated in the United States, said to be the worst in a century, has been easing, but a full-fledged recovery seems a long way off.
 「100年に1度」とも言われた米国発の金融危機は、最悪期を脱しつつある。しかし、再生への道のりは、まだ半ばといえよう。

A year has passed since major U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. collapsed on Sept. 15, 2008. The so-called Lehman Shock caused an unprecedented financial crisis that pushed nations across the world into a simultaneous economic downturn.
 米大手証券のリーマン・ブラザーズが昨年9月15日に経営破綻(はたん)してから1年になる。リーマン・ショックは、未曽有の金融危機の引き金になり、世界を深刻な同時不況に陥れた。

Prior to Lehman Brothers' collapse, the housing bubble had burst in the United States, and the market for higher-risk financial derivatives packed with mortgages had contracted sharply. This happened because monetary authorities failed to take swift action to respond to market volatility.
 米国で住宅バブルが崩壊し、住宅ローンなどを組み込んだハイリスクな金融商品が暴落した。そうした市場の暴走に、金融当局の対応も遅れた結果だ。

A year after the failure of Lehman Brothers, instability in global financial markets has finally been alleviated, and the world financial and economic situation is picking up.
 1年がたち、金融不安はようやく和らぎ、世界の金融・経済情勢は持ち直してきた。

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U.S. economy remains weak

Japan, China, European nations, the United States and other major countries mobilized every possible policy weapon at their disposal, including large-scale economic pump-priming activities and extraordinary easy-money policies. It is significant that international cooperation brought about good results and prevented the crisis from spiraling out of control.
 日米欧と中国などが、大型の景気対策や、異例の金融緩和策などの政策を総動員した。その国際協調が効果を発揮し、危機の連鎖を食い止めた意義は大きい。

Stock prices in Japan, Europe and the United States, which had tumbled, have recovered to levels about 10 percent lower than those recorded before the Lehman Shock. Stock prices in emerging countries, such as China, are turning up.
 急落した日米欧の株価は現在、リーマン・ショック前の1割減の水準まで回復し、中国など新興国の株価は上昇に転じている。

Economies in major countries are on a recovery track. Among leading countries that have registered negative growth, Japan returned to positive growth during the April-June period. Although Europe and the United States have so far been unable to sail out of the economic doldrums, their economies are expected to bottom out this year. China has maintained an economic growth rate of about 8 percent.
 景気も回復基調だ。マイナス成長に陥った先進国のうち、日本は4~6月期にプラス成長に転じ、景気後退が続く米国と欧州も、年内の底入れが見込まれる。中国は約8%の成長率を維持する。

But the financial crisis is not over. There is little ground for optimism.
 しかし、危機が完全に去ったわけではない。楽観は禁物だ。

In the United States, the jobless rate has risen to about 10 percent. Individual consumption remains low, and the economy remains weak. There are fears that a double-dip recession could occur.
 震源地の米国では、失業率が約10%に上昇している。個人消費の低迷も続き、景気回復力は弱い。再び景気が悪化する「二番底」も懸念される。

The sluggish U.S. economy could have serious consequences for the rest of the world, including Japan. Given that the global economy has yet to make a full-fledged recovery, it would be premature to begin an exit strategy and scale down economic pump-priming measures.
 米国経済のもたつきは、日本など世界に打撃となる。世界景気が本格的に回復するまで、景気刺激策を元に戻す「出口戦略」に踏み出すことは時期尚早だろう。

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G-20 meet focus of attention

To avoid a recurrence of the crisis, it is an urgent task to strengthen financial regulation and supervision.
 危機再発を防ぐための金融規制と監督の強化も急務だ。

The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama has announced its new reform proposals to tighten controls over the financial sector. But there are moves in the United States to oppose Obama's reform proposals.
 オバマ米大統領は、新たな規制改革案を示した。だが、米国内にはこれに反発する動きがある。

The Group of 20 developed and emerging nations also aims to strengthen regulations by reviewing the capital adequacy ratios of financial institutions and capping executive bonuses, but has had difficulty setting international rules due to conflicts of interest.
 主要20か国・地域(G20)も、金融機関の自己資本比率の見直しや経営陣の報酬制限などの規制の強化を目指すが、利害の対立で国際ルール作りは難航している。

It is feared that movements of speculative money have revived, taking advantage of a delay in efforts by individual countries to strengthen financial regulations. Crude oil and gold prices are soaring. We should stay alert for the rapid expansion of money flowing outside the real economy.
 取り組みの遅れを見透かすように、投機マネーの動きが復活してきたのが気がかりだ。原油、金などの価格が急上昇している。実体経済と遊離したマネーの再膨張を警戒しなければなるまい。

The G-20 financial summit meeting will be held in Pittsburgh on Sept. 24-25. How will the world's financial leaders apply the lessons learned from the Lehman Shock? Their ability to take action to accelerate financial revitalization will be put to the test.
 24日から米ピッツバーグで、G20金融サミットが開かれる。リーマン・ショックの教訓をどう生かすか。金融再生を加速する行動が首脳たちに問われよう。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Sept. 15, 2009)
(2009年9月15日01時09分 読売新聞)
by kiyoshimat | 2009-09-15 08:49 | 英字新聞

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