欧米経済混乱 余りにも遅い危機封じ込め策

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Nov. 28, 2011)
Measures to contain crises in U.S., EU too slow
欧米経済混乱　余りにも遅い危機封じ込め策（11月27日付・読売社説）

There is no resolution in sight for Europe's debt crisis, while in the United States, talks between Republicans and Democrats collapsed over the issue of slashing the U.S. federal deficit.
　欧州危機に収束のメドがたたず、米国では、財政赤字削減を巡る与野党協議が決裂した。

This is a serious situation in which the economic turmoil in the United States and European countries may spread to other economies.
　欧米経済の混乱が連鎖しかねない深刻な事態だ。

European countries and the United States need to act quickly to contain the crisis.
危機の封じ込めへ、欧米各国は迅速に行動する必要がある。

Indexes of major stock markets around the world, including those in Western economies and Asia, declined across the board last week.
　欧米、アジアなど世界の株式市場の株価は先週、軒並み下落した。

Tokyo stocks fell below 8,200 for the first time in about 32 months.
東京市場の株価は、約２年８か月ぶりに８２００円を割った。

On foreign exchange markets, the euro fell as low as the 102 yen level against the yen.
外国為替市場ではユーロが下落し、１ユーロ＝１０２円台を付けた。

The major factor that roiled the markets is that eurozone countries have been slow to work out measures to deal with the sovereign debt crisis, and Germany and France have failed to coordinate their efforts to tackle the crisis.
　市場を動揺させた主因は、欧州の危機対策が遅く、独仏両国の足並みが乱れている問題だ。

In Italy, the country most affected by the debt crisis triggered by Greece, there was a change of administration. 　ギリシャ危機が飛び火したイタリアでは、政権が交代したが、

But the market apparently remains skeptical about whether the new government can effectively carry out fiscal reconstruction.
市場はまだ、新政権の財政再建策の実行に懐疑的とみられる。

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Italian bond yields hit 7%

For this reason, the yield on 10-year Italian government bonds rose to the 7-percent level again, bringing into question the country's ability to put its fiscal house in order on its own.
　このため、イタリア１０年物国債の利回りは再び、自力再建が危ういとされる７％台に上昇した。

The yields on government bonds of other European countries, including Spain and France, have also risen.
スペインやフランスなどの国債利回りも上昇している。

One shocking development is that Germany failed to raise as much money as it hoped in a recent auction of 10-year bonds, reckoned to be the most creditworthy bonds in Europe.
　衝撃を与えたのが、欧州で最も信用力があるドイツの１０年物国債の入札で、応札額が募集額に達しない「札割れ」となったことだ。

Institutional investors have apparently shied away from buying.
機関投資家が敬遠したようだ。

Germany is considered to be the "final fortress" in the battle to resolve the debt crisis.
　ドイツは危機を収束する「最後の砦(とりで)」とされる。

Precautions are needed to prevent the credit uncertainty from spreading further.
信用不安の広がりを警戒しなければなるまい。

The government bonds of Portugal and Hungary were also downgraded recently.
　ポルトガルとハンガリーなどの国債の格付けも下げられた。

European countries must, first of all, implement measures to assist Greece, the epicenter of the crisis, and stem the crisis from spreading beyond Italy.
　欧州はまず、震源地ギリシャの支援策を実行し、危機の波及をイタリアで食い止めるべきだ。

Decisions have been made too slowly on concrete steps to expand the European Financial Stability Facility, the entity tasked with supporting crisis-hit eurozone countries.
域内危機国を支援する欧州金融安定基金（ＥＦＳＦ）を拡充する具体策の決定が遅すぎる。

To stabilize the market, it is essential for both Germany and France to join forces and deal with the issue promptly.
　独仏両国が結束し、対応を急ぐことが市場の安定に不可欠だ。

The European Union has proposed the 17-member eurozone countries issue "euro bonds" to tide over the crisis.
　欧州連合（ＥＵ）は危機を乗り切るため、ユーロ圏１７か国が発行するユーロ共通債を提案した。

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EU looks to common bonds

The EU has a common currency in the euro.
　通貨はユーロで統一されたが、

However, as the fiscal conditions differ among the member countries, the EU has concluded it would be better to monitor the fiscal conditions of member countries as a precondition for issuing common bonds.
財政はバラバラだから、共通債を発行して互いに財政を監視する。

We can understand the purpose of the common bond, but these reforms cannot deal with the currently raging crisis.
共通債の狙いはわかる。ただ、こうした改革では、いま足元で燃えさかる危機に対応できない。

The EU nations should prioritize their policies.
政策の優先度を見極めるべきだ。

On the other hand, it is also worrisome that in the United States, the talks between Republicans and Democrats collapsed over concrete steps to slash U.S. deficit spending by at least 1.2 trillion dollars over the next 10 years.
　一方、今後１０年間で１・２兆ドル超の財政赤字を削減する具体策を巡って、米国の与野党協議が決裂した点も懸念される。

The collapse came as the sides failed to iron out their differences, with Democrats calling for increasing taxes on the rich and cutting government spending, and Republicans opposing tax increases.
　富裕層への増税と歳出削減を主張する民主党と、増税反対の共和党が対立したためだ。

The road to the country's fiscal reconstruction remains uncertain.
財政健全化への道は不透明と言えよう。

If the turmoil over fiscal management and in politics continues in conjunction with political jockeying with an eye to next year's presidential election, credit-rating agencies may again downgrade U.S. government bonds, as they did this summer.
　来秋の大統領選の駆け引きも絡み、財政運営や政治の混乱が続くと、格付け会社が今夏に続き、米国債を格下げする恐れもある。

The global economy remains on a tight-rope.
　世界経済は綱渡りが続く。

It needs to be stabilized as quickly as possible.
早期に安定を図らねばならない。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Nov. 27, 2011)
（2011年11月27日01時22分 読売新聞）