Topic 1Amazon’s Empire亞馬遜帝國
1.The former bookseller accounts for more than half of every new dollar spent on line in U.S.
曾經的書商如今占美國線上交易的一半以上。
2.Since the beginning of 2015, its share pricehas jumped by173%,seventimesquickerthanin the twoprevious years.(and12timesfasterthanthe S&P 500 Index)
自2015年初，其股價迅速增長了173%，增速比過去兩年快了7倍。（增速比標準普爾500指數快了12倍。）
3.With a market capitalization ofsome 400bn,it isthe fifth most valuable firmin theworld.
亞馬遜市值達4000億美元，在世界上最有價值公司中名列第五。
4.Never before hasa companybeen worth so much for so long while making so little money: 92% of its value is due to profits expected after 2020.
以前沒有哪個公司市值飆高而盈利甚低：92%的市值產生于2020年后的利益預期。
5.Walmart already has revenuesnudging500bn and is beefing up online.
沃爾瑪收益逼近5000億美元，正加強其線上發展。
6.Last year cash-flow(before investment) was $16bn, more than quadruple the level five years ago.
去年，獲得投資之前，其現金流為160億美元，比五年前翻了兩番還不止。
7.If it makes as much money asinvestors hope, a rough calculation suggests its earningscould be worth the equivalent of25% ofthecombinedprofitsoflisted Western retail and media firms.
如果亞馬遜盈利能達投資者預期，粗略估計，其收益可能要達到西方所有零售及媒體上市公司收益總和的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.
對于此，懷疑的聲音四起：為了證明其估值，亞馬遜發展速度必須要快于幾乎任何一個現代大公司。
9.In anera when executives routinelywhinge aboutpressureto produce short-term results, Amazon is resolutely focused on the distant horizon.
在如今這個年代，董事會會定期施壓，要求取得短期收益，而亞馬遜則堅定地專注其長遠的發展。
10.Mr.Bezos emphasizes continual investment topropel its two principal businesses.
Bezos先生強調說，會一直進行投資以促進其兩項主要業務的發展。
11.Athirdvirtuous circle is starting to whirl aroundAlexa,the firm’s voice-activated assistant:
第三個良性循環開始圍繞著公司的語音助手Alexa展開。
12.So long as share holders retain their faith in this model, Amazon’s heady valuation resembles as elf-fulfillingprophecy.
只要股東們對該模式持有信心，亞馬遜這令人興奮的估值就像自我應驗的預言。
13.Theirfaith is sustained byAmazon’s record.
亞馬遜創下的記錄給了他們信心。
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.
它曾有過失敗---嘗試制造智能手機就獲得了慘敗。但是，該公司現如今開始快速產出現金。
15.If Amazon’sapproach totime-frames is unusual,so too isthe sheerbreadth of its activities.
如果說亞馬遜發展目標的時間框架與眾不同，其廣泛的業務范圍也是非比尋常。
16.Awingspan this largeis morereminiscent ofa conglomerate than a retailer,which makes Amazon’sshare
price seem even more bloated: stockmarkets typically apply a“conglomerate discount”to reflect their in-efficiencies.
亞馬遜發展規模如此之大，更像是聯合企業，而不是零售商。這使得亞馬遜股價看起來更為虛高：股市為反映聯合企業的低效，估價時往往會打個“聯合企業折扣”。
17.Seen through thislens,Amazon appearspristine.
從這個角度看，亞馬遜暫未受到影響。
18.Consumersapplaudit; itisthe most well-regarded company in America, according to a Harris poll.
消費者對此拍手叫好。據一項哈里斯民意調查顯示，亞馬遜被評為全美最受推崇的公司。
19.If itgets anywhere close tofulfilling them, it willattract the attention of regulators.
一旦亞馬遜的發展接近其既定目標，便會引起監管機構的注意。
20.Butasit grows,so willconcerns about its power.
但是，隨著亞馬遜不斷發展，對于其影響力的擔憂也會隨之增長。
21.Investorsvalue Amazon’s growth over profits; that makes predatory pricing more tempting.
投資者通過預期收益對亞馬遜發展進行估值；這使得掠奪性定價愈發誘人。
