China's consumers are pushing the nation to the top once again. Bloomberg News.

　　中國(guó)的消費(fèi)者正在將中國(guó)推上另一個(gè)高峰。

　　It will overtake Japan this year to be the country with the biggest appetite for luxury goods, HSBC predicts in a research report issued late last week. The broker said that it expects China's consumers to keep spending, even if their affluent counterparts in the West stop.

　　匯豐銀行上周公布的一份研究報(bào)告稱，中國(guó)將在今年超過(guò)日本，成為奢侈品需求最大的國(guó)家。據(jù)匯豐預(yù)計(jì)，就算西方富人停止購(gòu)買奢侈品，中國(guó)消費(fèi)者的支出仍將繼續(xù)增加。

　　The reasons are, at least in part, cultural. “Displaying wealth has become a trend in China, and we think this will continue to translate into growing purchases of luxury goods for oneself, or as gifts,” HSBC said. “We think consumer habits may not necessarily always correspond to income levels due to the need to socially fit in and show off wealth.”

　　其原因（至少部分的原因）在于中國(guó)的文化。匯豐認(rèn)為，炫富在中國(guó)已經(jīng)成為一種潮流，這將繼續(xù)體現(xiàn)為個(gè)人奢侈品消費(fèi)上的增加。出于社會(huì)認(rèn)同和炫富等原因，消費(fèi)習(xí)慣不一定總和收入層次相掛鉤。

　　It added a historical note: “In Chinese and Russian communist societies, individual property was not allowed and private wealth was traditionally suspicious. With the liberalization of the economy, a new class system was created where your place on the ladder may depend on how much money one earns, and owning luxury goods can help display the level of one's wealth.”

　　匯豐還提及了歷史方面的原因。過(guò)去，在中國(guó)和蘇聯(lián)這樣的社會(huì)主義國(guó)家里，政府不允許個(gè)人擁有財(cái)富。傳統(tǒng)上來(lái)說(shuō)，私人財(cái)產(chǎn)是很可疑的東西。經(jīng)濟(jì)放開之后，新出現(xiàn)了一系列社會(huì)階層劃分體系，你在這個(gè)體系中的位置決定于你賺多少錢，而擁有奢侈品有助于顯示你的富有程度。

　　Social changes occurring around the world, such as people marrying later, women's growing financial independence and increasing brand awareness, may also be fueling the growth in China, HSBC said.

　　匯豐還說(shuō)，全球范圍內(nèi)社會(huì)的變化，如婚齡的推遲、女性經(jīng)濟(jì)獨(dú)立性的增強(qiáng)、品牌意識(shí)的提升也促進(jìn)了中國(guó)消費(fèi)者對(duì)奢侈品的需求。

　　China has some 1,363 people with wealth of more than 1 billion yuan (roughly $157 million), up 36% from last year, HSBC said, citing statistic from the Hurun Rich List 2010. About 189 qualify as USD billionaires.

　　匯豐說(shuō)，根據(jù)《2010胡潤(rùn)財(cái)富報(bào)告》的統(tǒng)計(jì)數(shù)字，中國(guó)有1,363人擁有的個(gè)人財(cái)富超過(guò)了10億元（約合1.57億美元），人數(shù)比上一年增加了36%。其中大約有189人的個(gè)人資產(chǎn)達(dá)到或超過(guò)了十億美元。。

　　Watches and jewelry, in particular, stand to benefit from growing luxury demand in the region. In the first half of 2011, China overtook France as the third-largest importer of Swiss watches, growing 49% from the year-earlier period, HSBC said.

　　奢侈品需求增加尤其令手表和珠寶等產(chǎn)品受益。匯豐稱，在2011年上半年，中國(guó)已經(jīng)超過(guò)法國(guó)成為全球第三大瑞士手表進(jìn)口國(guó)，比前一年同期增加了49%。

　　Hong Kong, where watch retailers line some streets of upscale neighborhoods like Central, saw imports grow 28%. In addition, watchmakers such as Richemont and Swatch may gain from expected cuts to import taxes in China.

　　在手表零售店遍布中環(huán)等高檔社區(qū)街道兩側(cè)的香港，手表的進(jìn)口量增加了28%。此外，如果未來(lái)中國(guó)進(jìn)口稅降低，歷峰集團(tuán)(Richemont)和斯沃琪集團(tuán)(Swatch)（）等手表制造企業(yè)將從中受益。

　　Jewelry is even better poised than watches, according to HSBC, with the growing spending power of Chinese women working in the industry's favor.

　　根據(jù)匯豐對(duì)預(yù)測(cè)，珠寶業(yè)的形勢(shì)比手表業(yè)更加向好。中國(guó)女性日漸增強(qiáng)的消費(fèi)能力對(duì)這個(gè)行業(yè)越來(lái)越有利。

　　“There were almost 197 million women between the ages of 30 and 49 in 2009, representing almost 17% of the total population. This target audience,” HSBC said, “has huge potential as these women become more-engaged luxury consumers.” Local retailers like Luk Fook and Chow Sang Sang, as well as global players like Tiffany, are already catering to these consumers.

　　匯豐聲稱，2009年，30歲至49歲之間的中國(guó)女性人數(shù)為1.97億，接近全部人口的17%。這一目標(biāo)群體潛力巨大，因?yàn)樗齻冊(cè)谏莩奁废M(fèi)上將會(huì)變得更加活躍。六福和周生生等本土零售商和蒂芙尼(Tiffany)等國(guó)際珠寶商已經(jīng)在為這一龐大的顧客群體提供服務(wù)了。