美国财长 外需疲弱或拖累美国复苏

The US economy appears to have entered a period of “self-sustaining” growth but governments in other major economies must do more to stimulate demand, US Treasury secretary Jack Lew warned yesterday.

美国财政部长杰克•卢(Jack Lew)昨日警告称，美国经济似乎已进入“可自我持续”增长期，但其他主要经济体的政府必须采取更多行动刺激需求。

Mr Lew said, in evidence to Congress, that 2.5 per cent growth last year and robust forecasts for this year indicated that the US was set to expand “substantially faster than all of the other advanced economies combined” in 2015. But he added: “While the recovery in the US economy has helped to drive global growth, the rest of the world cannot depend on the United States to be the sole engine of growth.” Mr Lew cited a pledge last year from the G20 group of leading economies for more to be done to stimulate domestic demand around the world but hinted at US frustration that other major economies were not living up to that promise.

卢在接受美国国会质询时表示，去年2.5%的增长率、以及今年预计的强劲增长，显示美国2015年增长“速度将显著高于其他所有发达经济体”。但他补充称，“尽管美国经济复苏帮助推动了全球增长，但世界不能依赖美国做唯一的增长引擎。”卢提到去年20国集团(G20)的呼吁，即世界各国领先经济体应采取更多行动刺激内需，然后暗示，美国对其他主要经济体未能兑现这一承诺感到失望。

“Our strength allows us to maintain our leadership in the global community and while we must lead by example, we cannot do it alone,” he told the hearing.

他在国会听证会上表示：“我们的实力允许我们维持在国际社会的领导地位，然而，尽管我们必须以实际行动来领导，但我们孤掌难鸣。”

The US was the only major economy apart from Spain to have its growth outlook upgraded last month by the International Monetary Fund .

在国际货币基金组织(IMF)上月上调增长预测的国家中，美国是除西班牙以外唯一的主要经济体。

While the US economy decelerated in the fourth quarter of 2014, expanding at an annualised 2.6 per cent pace, compared with 5 per cent a year ago, its growth rate was still faster than the average set in the first 21 quarters of the recovery. This contrasts sharply with other major economies, including notably the eurozone, which has been heading into deflation.

尽管美国经济2014年4季度增长有所减速，年化增长率为2.6%，低于上年同期的5%，但该季度增长率仍高于此轮复苏21个季度以来的平均水平。这与其他主要经济体形成鲜明对比，尤其是欧元区，后者在滑向通缩。

The IMF expects the US to grow at three times the rate of the euro area this year.

IMF预计今年美国的增长率将为欧元区的3倍。

Mr Lew gave voice to broader fears among US officials that the rebound in the US could be curtailed by sluggish demand overseas. That worry was flagged up by the US Federal Reserve last week when it added “international developments” to a list of swing factors informing its interest rate policy.

卢表达了美国官员的普遍担忧，即海外需求疲软可能削弱美国经济反弹。上周，美联储(Fed)指出了这一担忧，将“国际动态”加入了影响其利率政策的因素清单。