Topic 1 ?Amazon’s Empire
1. The former bookseller accounts for more than half of every new dollar spent on line in U.S.
這家前書(shū)籍銷(xiāo)售商占據(jù)了美國(guó)線上消費(fèi)的一半以上。
2. Since the beginning of 2015, its share price has jumped by 173%, seven times quicker than in the two previous years.(and 12 times faster than the S&P 500 Index)
自2015年初以來(lái)，亞馬遜的股票價(jià)格上漲了173%，其上漲速度是過(guò)去兩年的7倍（比標(biāo)準(zhǔn)普爾指數(shù)快了12倍）。
3. With a market capitalization of some 400bn, it is the fifth most valuable firm in the world.
亞馬遜公司是全球排名第五的最具價(jià)值的公司，擁有總值4000億美元的市場(chǎng)資本。
4. Never before has a company been worth so much for so long while making so little money: 92% of its value is due to profits expected after 2020.
從來(lái)沒(méi)有一家公司在長(zhǎng)時(shí)間內(nèi)利潤(rùn)不高的情況下還能擁有如此大的價(jià)值：其92%的價(jià)值都是來(lái)自2020年以后的預(yù)期收益。
5. Walmart already has revenues nudging 500bn and is beefing up online.
沃爾瑪?shù)膬r(jià)值已經(jīng)接近5000億美元，而且正在加強(qiáng)它的線上業(yè)務(wù)。
6. Last year cash-flow (before investment) was $16bn, more than quadruple the level five years ago.
去年現(xiàn)金流動(dòng)（在投資前）達(dá)到160億美元，此數(shù)值相比五年前翻了三倍。
7. If it makes as much money as investors hope, a rough calculation suggests its earnings could be worth the equivalent of 25% of the combined profits of listed Western retail and media firms.
如果它的盈利真的如投資者所希望的那么多，粗略估計(jì)它的利潤(rùn)應(yīng)該相當(dāng)于西方零售媒體公司利潤(rùn)的25%。
8. Ground for skepticism does not come much more fertile than this: Amazon will have to grow faster than almost any big company in modern history to justify its valuation.
然而對(duì)此也有很多懷疑的聲音，就是亞馬遜將會(huì)比任何一家大型企業(yè)成長(zhǎng)得都要快，以此證明它的價(jià)值。
9. In an era when executives routinely whinge about pressure to produce short-term results, Amazon is resolutely focused on the distant horizon.
在一個(gè)執(zhí)行者們還在對(duì)制造短期效果不停埋怨的時(shí)代，亞馬遜已經(jīng)著眼于遙遠(yuǎn)的未來(lái)。
10. Mr. Bezos emphasizes continual investment to propel its two principal businesses.
貝索斯強(qiáng)調(diào)持續(xù)投資來(lái)推動(dòng)它的兩個(gè)主要業(yè)務(wù)。
11. A third virtuous circle is starting to whirl around Alexa, the firm’s voice-activated assistant:
一個(gè)第三方良性循環(huán)開(kāi)始圍繞亞歷山大，公司的語(yǔ)音虛擬助理。
12. So long as shareholders retain their faith in this model, Amazon’s heady valuation resembles a self-fulfilling prophecy.
只要股東們對(duì)這種模式保持信心，亞馬遜令人興奮的估值就像一個(gè)會(huì)自我實(shí)現(xiàn)的預(yù)言。
13. Their faith is sustained by Amazon’s record.
亞馬遜的記錄讓他們充滿(mǎn)信心。
14. It has had its failures—its attempt to make a smart-phone was a debacle. But the business is starting to crank out cash.
亞馬遜也有過(guò)不成功的時(shí)候，對(duì)智能手機(jī)的嘗試，就是一個(gè)完全的失敗。但是業(yè)務(wù)正在開(kāi)始帶來(lái)更多的現(xiàn)金。
15. If Amazon’s approach to time-frames is unusual, so too is the sheer breadth of its activities.
如果亞馬遜的時(shí)間框架的方法是不尋常的，那么它活動(dòng)的長(zhǎng)度也一樣。
16. A wingspan this large is more reminiscent of a conglomerate than a retailer, which makes Amazon’s share price seem even more bloated: stock markets typically apply a “conglomerate discount” to reflect their in- efficiencies.
其翼幅之大很容易讓人聯(lián)想到一個(gè)大型企業(yè)而不是一個(gè)零售商，這使亞馬遜的股票價(jià)格似乎更加膨脹——股票市場(chǎng)通常采用“集團(tuán)折扣”來(lái)反映他們的效率。
17. Seen through this lens, Amazon appears pristine.
透過(guò)這個(gè)視角，亞馬遜顯得質(zhì)樸。
18. Consumers applaud it; it is the most well-regarded company in America, according to a Harris poll.
根據(jù)哈里斯民意測(cè)驗(yàn)，消費(fèi)者對(duì)此十分贊同，因?yàn)檫@是美國(guó)最受歡迎的公司。
19. If it gets anywhere close to fulfilling them, it will attract the attention of regulators.
如果亞馬遜在所有領(lǐng)域都有所觸及，那么它將吸引監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)的注意。
20. But as it grows, so will concerns about its power.
但是在它發(fā)展的時(shí)候，人們同樣會(huì)關(guān)注它的力量。
21. Investors value Amazon’s growth over pro-fits; that makes predatory pricing more tempting.
投資者看重亞馬遜的增長(zhǎng)，而這使得掠奪性定價(jià)更加誘人。
