In most small countries, word that both of its two flagship car brands were poised to get new Chinese owners would probably cause an outcry.
在多数小国家，若有消息称，本国两大旗舰汽车品牌都准备出售给中国企业，很可能会引起强烈抗议。
But in Sweden, yesterday's reaction to word that China's Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Cohad agreed to become an investor in General Motor's Saab barely raised a shrug. This followed close on the heels of news that China's Geely Automobile was the only confirmed bidder for Volvo, which Ford Motor is considering selling.
然而，日前在瑞典消息传出，中国的北汽控股(BAIC)同意投资通用汽车(GM)旗下的萨博(Saab)品牌时，该国的反应十分冷淡。这与另一条消息接踵而至：中国的吉利汽车(Geely Automobile)是沃尔沃(Volvo)唯一得到确认的竞购者——福特汽车(Ford Motor)正考虑出售沃尔沃品牌。
Asked for her reaction Maud Olofsson, Sweden's enterprise and energy minister, told the Financial Times that the ownership of Saab “is not a business for the Swedish government”.
当被问及对此事的反应时，瑞典企业与能源部部长莫德?奥勒夫松(Maud Olofsson)向英国《金融时报》表示，萨博的所有权“与瑞典政府无关”。
A government spokesman went further, saying BAIC's involvement could be good if it helped Saab – which sold only 98,000 cars worldwide last year – break into one of the world's largest car markets. “If you look at other Swedish companies that have gone into co-operation with Chinese companies, they have worked well,” she said.
一位政府发言人更进一步，表示如果能帮助萨博——去年在全球仅售出9.8万辆汽车——打入世界最大的汽车市场之一，那么北汽的参与可能是个好消息。她表示：“看看其他已经和中国企业展开合作的瑞典公司，他们运转得很好。”
Labour unions were also relaxed about the deal. Aleksandar Zuza, an official at the IF-Metall union which represents Saab workers, said it was a “good sign” that the Koenigsegg consortium buying Saab had secured additional financing and potential access to the Chinese market.
各工会对这笔交易的态度也很放松。代表萨博员工的IF-Metall工会的官员亚历山大?祖扎(Aleksandar Zuza)表示，收购萨博的科尼赛克(Koenigsegg)财团获得了额外资金和进入中国市场的潜在可能，这是一个“好迹象”。
If anything, the deal could prove more controversial in China than in Sweden. Intense rivalry exists between BAIC and rivals such as Shangai Automotive and First Automobile Works, both of which have joint ventures with GM.
更有可能的是，相比于瑞典，这笔交易会在中国引起更大争议。北汽与上汽(Shangai Automotive)、一汽(First Automobile Works)等对手之间存在激烈竞争，而后两者都与通用成立了合资公司。
China's government opposes hasty international expansion by its carmakers, which it wants to consolidate into larger companies and improve their vehicle quality before they buy overseas assets. Foreign acquisitions require government approval.
中国政府反对本国汽车制造商仓促进行国际扩张，希望在它们购买海外资产之前，先整合成为规模更大的企业，并改进车辆的品质。海外收购行为需要得到政府的批准。
While governments in the US, France, Germany and elsewhere have poured billions of dollars into direct aid or scrappage subsidies to prop up flailing carmakers, Sweden's centre-right government has been tough toward pleas for help from its industry, dominated by GM-owned Saab and Ford's Volvo.
当美国、法国、德国等国政府以直接援助或旧车换现金的补贴方式，花费数十亿美元支持苦苦挣扎的汽车制造商们时，执行中间偏右路线的瑞典政府一直没有向汽车行业的援助请求妥协。通用汽车的萨博和福特汽车的沃尔沃在瑞典汽车业占据着主导地位。
BAIC's agreement with Koenigsegg came after the government refused the Swedish supercar maker's request to provide financing needed to close the purchase of the lossmaking brand from GM. BAIC had looked at Saab after GM's decision to sell it earlier this year, but failed to make a shortlist.
在科尼赛克与北汽签署协议前，这家瑞典超级跑车制造商曾请求政府提供资金，完成从通用汽车手中收购这个亏损品牌的交易，但瑞典政府拒绝了。今年早些时候，在通用汽车决定出售萨博后，北汽曾考虑收购，但未能进入候选名单。
The agreement announced yesterday will see Saab's new owners form a joint venture with BAIC to sell and later produce the brand in China. BAIC will probably also use some of Saab's technology in its own cars, a person close to the deal said.
日前公布的这项协议意味着，萨博的新东家将与北汽控股成立一家合资企业，在中国销售该品牌产品，以后还将在中国生产。一位了解这笔交易的人士表示，北汽可能也会将萨博的某些技术应用于自己的汽车品牌。
For BAIC, Saab's appeal lies in its knowhow in building models such as the all-new version of its flagship 9-5 sedan due to debut in Frankfurt next week. The brand, headquartered north of Gothenburg, will come with an engineering and design staff of about 1,000 inherited from GM.
对北汽而言，萨博的吸引力在于其车型制造工艺，例如定于下周在法兰克福首度亮相、经过全新改版的旗舰产品9-5轿车。总部位于哥德堡北部的萨博将带来一个从通用汽车继承而来的约1000人的工程设计团队。
“Chinese manufacturers are hoping to buy up technology that will help them catch up to world standards on both the product and the development side more quickly than they would on their own,” said Christoph Stuermer, automotive analyst at IHS Global Insight.
“中国的汽车制造商希望买下的技术能够帮助他们在产品和研发方面赶上世界标准，而且比他们依靠自身力量的速度更快，” IHS Global Insight的汽车业分析师克里斯托夫?施蒂默尔(Christoph Stuermer)表示。
Koenigsegg's acquisition of Saab still hinges on the carmaker securing a loan worth €400m-€500m from the European Investment Bank, which requires a Swedish government guarantee. Stockholm has indicated it is willing to offer such a guarantee, but ruled out additional support.
科尼赛克能否成功收购萨博，仍有赖于这家汽车制造商是否能从欧洲投资银行(European Investment Bank)获得4亿至5亿欧元的贷款。这笔贷款需要瑞典政府担保。瑞典政府已表示愿意提供担保，但拒绝考虑提供额外支持。
Geely's bid for Volvo, if successful, could provoke more controversy than a BAIC deal as the Chinese carmaker is seeking 100 per cent control of the much larger carmaker. Some Swedish government officials have expressed reservations amid worries about job losses and intellectual property leakage to China.
吉利对沃尔沃的竞购如果获得成功，可能会引起比北汽交易更大的争议，因为吉利试图获得100%的控股权，而沃尔沃是一家规模大得多的汽车制造商。一些瑞典政府官员已表示对此持保留意见，担心出现裁员和把知识产权泄露给中国。 |
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