After The Crash, Auto Towns Revive
汽车业成功复原给美国经济注入强心针
A year after the U.S. government swooped in to rescue two crippled auto giants, the car business is showing signs of life again -- and so are local economies across the heartland that depend on it.
美国政府出手急救两家重疾缠身的汽车巨头已是一年前的事，现在汽车业再现生机，依托于汽车业的美国中部经济亦是如此。
As soon as General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC finished racing into and out of bankruptcy court last fall, orders for headlamps and other car parts began streaming back to two factories here in this southern Illinois hamlet. The factories quickly re-hired about 400 of their 550 laid-off workers, giving Flora, Pop. 4,772, a big shot in the arm.
随着通用汽车(General Motors)和克莱斯勒集团(Chrysler Group)在去年秋天先后进出破产法庭，对车灯及其他配件的订单也慢慢流回了伊利诺伊州弗罗拉市的两家汽车配件厂。于是它们忙不迭地在原来打发回家的 550名工人中又拉回来约400人，这可是给人口只有4772人的小城弗罗拉打了一剂超级强心针。
Local businesses are perking up. The Best Western just outside town occasionally fills all 41 of its rooms again. And shoppers are less scarce in Joe Etchison's appliance store. 'Last year, people were sticking with the basics and skipping the stainless-steel refrigerators,' he said, walking his downtown showroom trailed by Taz, his dog. People have 'figured out the world has not ended.'
本地商业也重振旗鼓。城外酒店Best Western的41间客房时不时会再度全满。家电零售商乔伊?埃奇逊(Joe Etchison)的顾客也多了起来，他说，去年大家都只买些最基本的东西，对不锈钢外壳冰箱什么的看都不看。埃奇逊一边在自己开设在城里的展厅内牵着自己的小狗塔兹溜达，一边说现在人们已经明白还没到世界末日。
Similar scenes are playing out across the Midwest, where the speedy stabilization of GM and Chrysler appears to have helped towns tied to the auto industry to get back on their feet more quickly than they may have otherwise.
整个美国中西部地区都在上演着这一幕。通用汽车和克莱斯勒的迅速企稳帮助了那些背靠汽车业发展的城镇恢复元气，而且它们的复原速度似乎要快于其他地方。
One year ago today, the Obama administration took a gamble and forced Chrysler into a Chapter 11 reorganization. Two months later, it did the same to GM, spending almost $65 billion of taxpayer money in an effort to prevent the two giants from collapsing and perhaps gravely injuring the economy as a whole.
一年前的今天，奥巴马(Obama)政府放手一搏，迫使克莱斯勒根据破产法第十一章进行重组。两个月后，政府又要求通用汽车也这么做。政府为此花费了纳税人大约650亿美元，为的是不让这两家汽车业巨头破产并给整体经济带来沉重打击。
With Washington pushing the process, both companies exited bankruptcy in just six weeks -- lightning speed compared to the years that some firms spend there. Auto-parts supplier Visteon Corp., for example, filed for bankruptcy protection four days before GM and still hasn't emerged from Chapter 11.
在美国政府的助推下，两家公司都在仅仅六周后就申请脱离破产保护，和其他汽车业公司可能需要的几年时间比起来堪称高速。举例来说，汽车配件商Visteon Corp.先于通用汽车四天申请了破产保护，直到现在还没有走出这一状态。
The taxpayer bailout remains controversial. The administration says it is unlikely to recoup all its money. GM and Chrysler are far from healthy. Many of the 400,000 auto jobs lost since 2008 are gone for good.
人们对汽车业救助计划仍存争议。美国政府说可能无法尽数收回资金。现在通用汽车和克莱斯勒也远远谈不上状态良好。从 2008年以来汽车业共削减了40万个工作岗位，它们当中大多将一去不复返。
And the bailout's precise economic impact is hard to pin down. Improvements in the U.S. economy, stabilizing home prices and this year's uptick in new-car sales are undoubtedly helping the industry, too.
这份救援计划的具体经济影响还难以确定。美国经济的改善、住房价格的回稳以及这一年间新车销量的增长无疑也帮助了汽车业。
The industry is by no means booming. In March, motor-vehicle and parts plants were operating at 54.4% of their capacity, according to estimates by the Federal Reserve Bank. That's a low level, historically -- 70% to 80% is considered normal -- but better than the low of 36.8% last June. In March, motor-vehicle and parts manufacturing was up 24.3% compared to the year-earlier period, according to the Fed. Overall manufacturing was up just 4.6%.
现在汽车业远非蓬勃发展。美联储银行估算，3月份汽车及配件工厂的开工率仅为54.4%，低于历史水平（据信70%至80%是正常值），但好于去年6月份时的36.8%。美联储数据显示，3月份汽车和配件生产同比增长了 24.3%，而其他制造业的产量增幅仅为4.6%。
'The goal [of the bailout] was to prevent the imminent collapse of two major manufacturers at a time when there wasn't an answer to when things were going to stop getting worse,' said Thomas Klier, an economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. 'From that perspective, it was effective.' Now it depends on 'how well [the companies] execute their business plans.'
美联储芝加哥分行经济学家克莱尔(Thomas Klier)说，美国政府汽车业救援计划旨在防范两大汽车巨头日益临近的破产，当时没人知道事情什么时候才能不再变得更糟；从这个角度看，它是成功的，现在它则取决于两家公司能把自己的业务计划执行得怎样了。
If GM and Chrysler had languished in bankruptcy, industry executives argue, things would have been far worse. 'I think the supplier industry would have collapsed and, for that matter, the U.S. economy,' said Matthew Simoncini, chief financial officer of seat maker Lear Corp., which itself sought bankruptcy protection last July. 'Ultimately the bailout has helped the suppliers. It allowed GM to remain viable, and the fact that it got back up and running quickly really helped the supply chain.'
企业业内高管认为，如果通用汽车和克莱斯勒真的走到了破产地步，那么整个事态会变得糟糕很多。汽车座椅生产商Lear Corp.的首席财务长西蒙斯尼(Matthew Simoncini)说，我认为汽车供应商也将破产，整个美国经济也是这样。该公司曾在去年7月份时寻求了破产保护。西蒙斯尼说，救援计划最终帮助了汽车供应商，让通用汽车活了下来，它的卷土重来和快速运转真的是盘活了整个供应链条。
Lear spent about 125 days in Chapter 11 last year, three times as long as GM. Now it, too, is hiring. A plant in Hammond, Ind., that supplies seats to Ford Motor Co. recently said it was adding about 250 more workers to the 170 employed there.
Lear在破产保护的状态中待了125天，比通用汽车多两倍。现在它也恢复了招工。一家设在印第安纳州哈蒙德、为福特汽车(Ford Motor Co.)提供座椅的工厂近期表示，现在工厂有170名雇员，计划增雇约250人。
In Rogersville, Tenn., and Marion, Va., plants that make steering components recalled many workers once it became clear that Chrysler was staying in business. A Tenneco Inc. factory in Litchfield, Mich., recently rehired the 86 people it let go last year. TRW Automotive Holdings Corp., owner of the Rogersville and Marion plants, is also hiring at a Saginaw, Mich., plant that supplies GM.
在田纳西州的罗哲斯维和弗吉尼亚州的马里昂，生产驾驶系统元件的工厂在确定克莱斯勒将继续留在汽车行业中后纷纷召回了许多工人。一家位于密歇根州利奇菲尔德的Tenneco工厂重新聘用了86名去年解雇的工人。在罗哲斯维和马里昂开设了工厂的TRW Automotive Holdings Corp.也开始给密歇根州的沙吉诺工厂增加人手，这家工厂为通用汽车供货。
Auto sales are picking up. The industry is on track to sell about 11.5 million cars and light trucks in the U.S. market. That's a long way from the annual sales of 16 million from earlier in the decade, but up from last year's 10.4 million.
汽车销量正在上扬，整个行业有望在美国市场售出约1,150 万辆轿车和轻型卡车。这个数字相比几年前1,600万辆的年销量还有很远的距离，但高于去年的1,040万辆。
One thing in auto makers' favor: Americans are driving old vehicles, and a better economy might persuade them to buy new ones. Last year, the average passenger car in service was 10.6 years old, the highest level in more than a decade, according to R.L. Polk Co.
一个对汽车生产商有利的因素是，美国人开的都是旧车，如果经济形势好转，他们可能会去购买新车。R.L. Polk Co.的数据显示，去年在用乘用车辆的平均车龄有10.6年，是10多年来的最高水平。
At the same time, employment is brightening a bit. In Hawkins County, where Rogersville is located, unemployment eased to 11% in March, down from 11.6% a year ago. In Smyth County, home to the town of Marion, the March rate was 11.9%, down from 12.2%.
与此同时，就业环境也在慢慢改善。在罗哲斯维所在的霍金斯县(Hawkins County)，3月份的失业率从一年前的11.6%下降到了11%。在马里昂镇所在的史密斯县(Smyth County)，3月份失业率从12.2%下降到了11.9%。
The TRW steering plant, one of the largest employers in the county, laid off 75% of its 275 workers last year when Chrysler's survival was in doubt. After the auto maker was restructured and paired with partner Fiat SpA, the plant brought back most of its workers. Other suppliers, including Cooper-Standard Automotive, which makes fuel lines, and Hutchinson Worldwide, which makes rubber seals, are hiring, too.
TRW公司的转向部件厂是县里最大的雇主之一，去年在克莱斯勒面临生存考验时，工厂将275名工人裁减了75%。在克莱斯勒实现重组并与合作伙伴菲亚特(Fiat SpA)结盟后，工厂返聘了多数工人。其他供应商也在招人，其中包括生产燃油管的Cooper-Standard Automotive，以及生产橡胶垫的Hutchinson Worldwide。
In Rogersville, in northeastern Tennessee, home prices are down 20% from where they once were. Some residents are in danger of foreclosure or have already fallen victim to it, said Rhenda Carroll, who manages a prominent real estate agency.
罗哲斯维位于田纳西州东北部，其房价已较过去的水平下跌了两成。运营着一家知名房地产经纪公司的卡罗尔(Rhenda Carroll)说，一些居民面临着住房被止赎的危险，有的已经被止赎。
Now, home sales are showing some life, Ms. Carroll said. 'It's less bad, but it sure ain't like it used to be.'
卡罗尔说，目前住房的销售正在显现一些生机。她说，情况缓和了一些，但肯定赶不上过去的样子。
Lynn Lawson, head of the county's industrial recruiting agency, had a big win in 2008, persuading a Korean copper-wiring supplier, Sam Dong Co., to locate a plant in Rogersville. 'It's going to be a two- to five-year climb back,' he said. But with some auto-supplier jobs coming back, 'everybody has a bit of happiness floating around in them.'
2008年，霍金斯县工业招聘代理机构负责人劳森(Lynn Lawson)获得了一个巨大的成功。他劝说韩国铜线供应商Sam Dong Co.在罗哲斯维设立了一家工厂。他说，要回到过去的水平得有两到五年的时间，但随着汽车供应商的一些就业岗位得以恢复，人人心头都涌动着一些快乐情绪。
When GM and Chrysler went into bankruptcy protection and shut down their U.S. plants, many in Flora wondered how the town would weather the storm. 'It was nail-biting time,' said Mayor Bob Tackitt.
在通用汽车和克莱斯勒进入破产程序并关闭美国工厂时，弗罗拉的很多人在思考如何渡过这个寒冬。镇长塔基特(Bob Tackitt)说，那是一种让人火急火燎的日子。
There was good reason for concern. The auto industry had seen suppliers fall into bankruptcy in the past, and many turned into messy affairs. Delphi Corp., the former parts division of GM, filed for Chapter 11 in 2005, and battled with investors and creditors for four years before finally being reorganized.
当时的担忧不无道理。汽车行业曾出现供应商破产，很多供应商接着又陷入了麻烦。曾是通用汽车零部件部门的Delphi Corp.于2005年根据破产法第11章申请破产，接下来同投资人和债权人之间的纠纷延续了四年之久，过后才终于实现了重组。
But in the cases of both Chrysler and GM, the government's auto task force hammered out cost-cutting agreements with creditors, the United Auto Workers union and other parties before the companies filed. That eliminated much of the in-court wrangling.
但在克莱斯勒和通用汽车申请破产之前，美国政府的汽车行业特别工作组已经同债权人、全美汽车工人联合会(United Auto Workers)和其他各方达成了成本削减协议，这样就避免了很多法庭上的纠葛。
On June 10, after 41 days in bankruptcy court, Chrysler emerged as a new company owned by a UAW health-care fund, the U.S. and Canadian governments and Fiat. GM filed on June 1 and emerged on July 10, with the U.S. government owning 60% and Canada and the UAW fund holding smaller stakes.
6月10日，在走了41天的破产法庭手续过后，克莱斯勒成为一家新公司，由汽车工人联合会的医保基金、美国政府、加拿大政府和菲亚特共同持股。通用汽车于6月1日申请破产，7月10日重生，由美国政府持股 60%，加拿大政府和汽车工人联合会持有较小的股份。
Soon after, GM began bringing its plants back on line. Chrysler likewise restarted production, although at a slower pace than GM.
不久，通用汽车开始让工厂重新开工。克莱斯勒也恢复了生产，不过速度比通用汽车慢一些。
GM and Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy in 'an amazingly short period of time,' said Martin Fischer, president of Hella Corporate Center USA. Their quick return to production 'undoubtedly saved jobs and reduced operating losses at major North American suppliers such as Hella.'
Hella Corporate Center USA总裁费希尔(Martin Fischer)说，经过很短的一段时间，通用汽车和克莱斯勒就从破产中走出，快得让人吃惊，它们的迅速复产无疑挽救了工作机会，并降低了Hella等重要北美供应商的运营成本。
This year, with Flora's auto plants humming, downtown merchants are detecting a slow, welcome turnaround.
今年，由于弗罗拉的汽车工厂维持着生产，市中心的商户们迎来了缓慢而可喜的复苏。
At Shirt Tales, a shop stocked with everying from sporting goods to Jelly Belly jellybeans, a lot of parents were buying socks and belts to match their Little Leaguers' uniforms -- the bare minimum they could get by with -- said employee Janice Randall. Now, new gloves and $79 aluminum bats are selling, too.
有一家店铺名为“Shirt Tales”，从体育用品到“Jelly Belly”牌的软糖，里面各种各样的东西都有。店员兰德尔(Janice Randall)说，以前很多父母都是在为他们参加了少年棒球联盟(Little League)的孩子选购与制服搭配的袜子、腰带，这是他们的最低着装要求。现在，新款手套和79美元的铝制球棍也卖得出去了。
At the Ace hardware on North Street, owner Jeff Harr said customers are no longer sticking only to things they absolutely need. 'Sales of our patio furniture have gone from nothing last year to decent this year.' Mr. Harr once had 18 employees but cut back to 12. He's considering bringing on another person.
在该镇北大街的“Ace”五金店，店主哈尔(Jeff Harr)说，顾客们已经不再只买必备物件了。他说，去年我们的露台家具一件也没有卖出，今年销量还算不错。哈尔曾聘有18位员工，裁人后只剩下12位。他在考虑是不是再雇一人。
Jeff Bennett / Mike Ramsey
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