Economist, June 29, 2013

choi

(1) Exporting to China | Eastward march; British exports to China are rising. But government policy is holding back business
http://www.economist.com/news/br ... k-business-eastward

Quote:

“Its [Britain’s] trade deficit with the country [China] is fully £20 billion a year. This is partly the result of a fundamental economic mismatch. Britain’s strength is in services. China’s hunger is for raw materials and machine tools. China seized 80% of metals supply last year, boosting exports from Australia. The odd British firm, such as Rio Tinto, a mining company, has cashed in. But countries like Germany, whose firms sell kit used in Chinese factories, have done better.

“And Britain is better at luxury than machine parts.

“Britain’s rel strength is in financial and business services. It is already the third biggest exporter of these to China. HSBC * * * Standard Chartered

“Prospects for cultural exports are brighter. * * * a market has developed in which Britain is a world beater: television formats. In 2011 Britain’s global exports of formats--excitements like ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ and ‘Master Chef’--were worth £1.5 billion.

Note:
(a) “Although sterling is 25% cheaper”

pound sterling
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pound_sterling
(section 1 Name)
(b) “Beijing has called time on industrial excess”

call time (on something): “(British English) to say or decide that it is time for something to finish”
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/call_1
(c) Burberry
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burberry
(d) “Church’s, a Northamptonshire shoemaker owned by Prada, set up its first shops in China in May.”

Church’s
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church%27s
(a high-end English footwear manufacturer founded in 1873 by Thomas Church and his three sons; In 1999, the company was acquired by the international fashion group Prada; Headquarters  Northampton)

(e) HSBC
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HSBC
(section 1.1 Origins to 2000; Headquarters  London)
(f) Standard Chartered
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_Chartered
(Headquarters  London)
(g) “A clutch of public bodies manage Britain’s overseas relationship. Only one, UKTI, has an explicit commercial focus.”

UK Trade & Investment
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UK_Trade_%26_Investment

choi

(2) German business and English | No Denglisch; Willkommen to linguistic purity.
http://www.economist.com/news/bu ... purity-no-denglisch

Note:
(a) German English dictionary
(i) “Willkommen to linguistic purity”

willkommen (adj; n; v): “welcome”
* In English, it is “Welcome to Germany!”  But in German, it is “Willkommen in Deutschland!”  (The preposition is different.)  
(ii) bahn (noun feminine): "railway; path; way"
(The last two definitions are for German autobahns
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_autobahns
)
(iii) Neue Snackbox für Kids: "New Snackbox for Kids"
(iv) "Vorsprung durch Technik"
* vorsprung (noun masculine): "start; head start; prominence; protuberance; protrusion"
* durch (preposition): "by"
* technik (noun feminine): "engineering; technology"

(b) "ponderous English"

ponderous (adj; Latin ponder-, pondus weight):
"1: of very great weight
2: unwieldy or clumsy because of weight and size"
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ponderous

(c) anglicism (n; plural: anglicisms):
"a word or phrase borrowed from English into a foreign language <the French have an irritating Anglicism: un toast>"
http://oxforddictionaries.com/us ... n_english/Anglicism

(d) "Offenders [in France] are told to use papillon for flyer, tablette for iPad and vignette for widget.

French English dictionary
(i) papillon (noun masculine): "butterfly"

* flyer (pamphlet)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flyer_(pamphlet)
(A flyer or flier, also called a circular, handbill or leaflet)
(ii) tablette (noun feminine): "tablet"
(iii) vignette (French: diminutive of vigne 'vine'): "thumbnail, sticker"  (I do not know why "vignette" becomes "widget")

(e) "Most English slogans used in Germany fall flat because they are so garbled"

garble (vt): "to so alter or distort as to create a wrong impression or change the meaning <garble a story>"
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/garble
(f) Audi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audi
(section 2.1 Birth of the company and its name)