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The world this week
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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles confirmed that it was seeking a merger with Renault, a combination that would create the world’s third-largest car company behind Volkswagen and Toyota. FCA and Renault hope the merger will save cash to bolster investments in electric vehicles and self-driving cars. But Renault is also in a close partnership with Japan’s Nissan and Mitsubishi. That alliance has been strained since the arrest of Carlos Ghosn, its former boss, on charges of financial misconduct at Nissan (which he denies) and its future is now in question.
菲亞特克萊斯勒汽車證實，正尋求與雷諾合并，這一合并將締造出僅次于大眾和豐田的全球第三大汽車公司。菲亞特克萊斯勒和雷諾希望這項合并能節省資金，以支持對電動汽車和自動駕駛汽車的投資。而雷諾還與日本的日產和三菱建立了密切的合作關系。自從上一任老板卡洛斯·戈恩因被控在日產存在財務不端行為(當事人否認了這一指控)被捕以來，雷諾與日產的聯盟關系一直處于緊張狀態，現在日產的未來也受到了質疑。
The Huawei effect
華為效應
Alibaba was reportedly considering a second listing of its shares, but in Hong Kong rather than New York, where its $25bn stockmarket debut in 2014 remains the world’s biggest IPO. This time it is seeking to raise $20bn. Its decision to list in Hong Kong comes amid uncertainties over the future treatment of Chinese companies by the American authorities. Alibaba is using its profits from e-commerce to invest in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and other sensitive tech areas where America and China are competing aggressively.
據報道，阿里巴巴正考慮在香港二次上市，而不是在紐約。2014年，阿里巴巴在紐約進行了規模達250億美元的IPO,這至今仍是全球最大規模IPO。這一次，該公司擬融資200億美元。該公司決定在香港上市之際，美國當局未來對待中國企業的態度尚不明朗。阿里巴巴正利用從電子商務中獲得的利潤，正在對人工智能、量子計算和其他中美兩國正積極競爭的敏感技術領域進行投資。
The latest skirmish in the trade war saw China threaten to limit supplies to America of rare earths, a group of 17 metals vital to fast-growing businesses such as electric cars but also widely used in the defence industry. China accounts for the vast bulk of rare-earth production; for some of the metals it is the sole producer. In 2010 it cut exports to Japan during a maritime dispute.
在最新的貿易戰沖突中，中國威脅要限制對美國的稀土供應。稀土由17種金屬組成，不僅對電動汽車等快速增長的企業至關重要，而且也廣泛用于國防工業。中國稀土產量占全球總量的絕大比重;中國是某些金屬的唯一生產國。2010年，中國因一次海上爭端削減了對日本的稀土出口。
Maersk, the world’s biggest shipping company, gave a downbeat assessment of the effect of global-trade tensions on its industry. It estimates that container trade grew by 1.7% in the first quarter compared with the same period a year earlier. That is less than half the average for 2018.
全球最大的航運公司馬士基對全球貿易緊張對其行業的影響給出了悲觀的評估。據該公司估計，其第一季度集裝箱貿易同比增長1.7%。還不到2018年平均水平的一半。
Boeing’s 737 max aircraft is unlikely to return to service until at least August, according to the International Air Transport Association. A recent meeting of global safety-regulators avoided putting a date on a return for the max, which has been grounded following two crashes. iata stressed that it will be regulators who make the final decision.
據國際航空運輸協會稱，波音737 max飛機至少要到8月份才能復飛。在最近召開的一次全球安全監管會議上，監管機構沒有給出因兩起空難事故被停飛的max飛機具體復飛日期。國際航空運輸協會強調，最終決定權在于監管機構。
The Food and Drug Administration approved a gene therapy developed by Novartis for treating spinal muscular atrophy in children. Priced at $2.1m, Zolgensma is the world’s most expensive drug, though it costs half the current treatment for SMA over the first ten years of a child’s life.
美國食品和藥物管理局批準了諾華(Novartis)開發的一種基因療法，用于治療兒童脊髓性肌萎縮癥（SMA）。售價210萬美元的Zolgensma是全球最昂貴的藥物，盡管其成本只有目前兒童前十年治療脊髓性肌肉萎縮癥費用的一半。
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