CNN News: 特朗普重新協(xié)商北美自由貿(mào)易協(xié)定

And President Trump says he's beginning to renegotiate NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement between the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
特朗普總統(tǒng)表示，他將開始重新協(xié)商北美自由貿(mào)易協(xié)定(NAFTA)，即美國與加拿大和墨西哥之間的自由貿(mào)易協(xié)定。
Italian fabrics, Japanese Kobe beef, American cars, where there are goods, there's trade.
意大利的紡織品、日本的神戶牛肉、美國的汽車——哪里有商品哪里就有貿(mào)易。
Trade deals make it easier and cheaper for countries to trade with one another. They're not necessary, but there's a price to pay if you don't have one. Countries generally slap an extra charge on foreign products when they cross the border.
貿(mào)易協(xié)議可使國家之間的貿(mào)易往來變得更簡單、更優(yōu)惠。雖說不是必需的，但是如果沒有貿(mào)易協(xié)議，那各國就需要付出一定的代價(jià)。通常，各國都會在外國商品過海關(guān)時(shí)征收額外費(fèi)用。
Free trade deals can get rid of these tariffs, pushing prices down and giving customers better access to foreign goods. They can strengthen diplomatic ties. Almost every country in the world has them. Around 230 trade deals went into force between 2000 and 2016, according to World Trade Organization.
自由貿(mào)易協(xié)議可以擺脫關(guān)稅，降低商品價(jià)格，使顧客更容易購買到外國商品。另外，貿(mào)易協(xié)議還可以增強(qiáng)外交關(guān)系。幾乎全球所有國家都有貿(mào)易協(xié)議。據(jù)世界貿(mào)易組織統(tǒng)計(jì)，2000年至2016年，全世界有約230個(gè)貿(mào)易協(xié)議生效。
So, how do they work?
那么，貿(mào)易協(xié)議是怎樣發(fā)揮作用的?
Let's say two or more countries, Country A, Country B, and Country C, decide they want a deal. They gather important people around the table, lawyers, negotiators, regulators, and they hammer out the details. They'll work out the different sectors they want to focus on and discuss ways to align their industry rules. Leaders give their stamp of approval and generally, lawmakers have to ratify everything.
舉例來說，兩個(gè)及兩個(gè)以上國家，比如A國、B國和C國決定簽訂貿(mào)易協(xié)議。這三個(gè)國家的重要人物——律師、談判代表、監(jiān)管部門人員等——會圍坐一桌展開談判，他們會磋商出貿(mào)易協(xié)議的具體內(nèi)容。他們會劃出重點(diǎn)行業(yè)，并商討出調(diào)整行業(yè)規(guī)定的辦法。然后各國領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人簽字同意，通常還需立法委員進(jìn)行核準(zhǔn)。
But it takes time. Modern, large scale trade deals between multiple countries can take years to sign and there's a lot of back and forth. The recent free trade deal between Canada and the European Union took nearly a decade to sign. Even smaller trade deals can often take a year or two.
不過這一切都需要時(shí)間。多國間現(xiàn)代化、大規(guī)模的貿(mào)易協(xié)議通常需要數(shù)年時(shí)間才能簽署，期間還要經(jīng)過反復(fù)磋商。最近加拿大和歐盟之間簽署的自由貿(mào)易協(xié)議耗費(fèi)了近十年時(shí)間。規(guī)模較小的貿(mào)易協(xié)議也可能需要一兩年的時(shí)間才能簽署。
But not everyone is a fan. Critics say it's better when the tariffs are in place and everyone minds their own business. They say cheap foreign products drown out domestic industry and hurt local jobs. But when trade barriers go up, countries can hurt themselves, leading to higher prices, potential shortages and unhappy customers.
但是，并不是所有人都支持貿(mào)易協(xié)議。批評人士認(rèn)為，加收關(guān)稅、大家各行其道做好本國生意似乎更好。他們表示，便宜的外國商品會重創(chuàng)國內(nèi)產(chǎn)業(yè)，不利于當(dāng)?shù)鼐蜆I(yè)。但是，貿(mào)易壁壘增加時(shí)，各國也會傷害到自身，導(dǎo)致價(jià)格上漲，還可能會出現(xiàn)商品短缺、顧客不滿等情況。