中國成澳洲最大移民來源國
China biggest source of migrants to Australia
英國《金融時報》 彼得•史密斯悉尼報導
China has overtaken the UK to become Australia's biggest source of migrants in an historic shift that underlines the strengthening ties between the two Asia Pacific nations.
中國已經超越英國，成為澳大利亞最大的移民來源國。這一歷史性轉變突顯了這兩個亞太國家關係的不斷增強。
Migrants from China jumped a fifth to nearly 30,000 out of Australia's total annual intake of 168,685, according to government figures published on Wednesday.
據周三公佈的政府數據顯示，2010-11年度來自中國的移民上升了20%，達到近3萬人，而同期澳大利亞吸納的移民總數為168685人。
The rise comes at a time when Australia is grappling with skilled worker shortages, especially in its booming mining and energy industries that are investing record sums to meet China's demands for commodities and fuel. China is Australia's biggest two-way trading partner.
澳大利亞近年來正努力解決熟練工人短缺的問題，尤其是在其蓬勃發展的採礦業與能源業，澳大利亞正在這兩個行業大舉投資，以滿足中國對大宗商品與燃料的需求。中國移民數量的攀升正是在此背景下發生的。中國是澳大利亞最大的雙邊貿易夥伴。
Australia's jobless rate has flat-lined this year at about 4.9 per cent, considered close to full employment, and the government has forecast it will fall to 4.5 per cent in 2013.
澳大利亞今年的失業率幾乎與去年持平，在4.9%左右（被認為接近充分就業），而政府預測到2013年失業率將下降到4.5%。
The greater migrant numbers from China helped offset the continued decline from the UK, where numbers fell for a fifth straight year to slightly less than 24,000. India, now Australia's third biggest migrant source, has also declined in recent years and fell 6 per cent to 21,768.
中國移民數量的增加幫助抵消了英國移民數量的持續下降——來自英國的移民數量已連續第五年下降，跌至2.4萬人以下。澳大利亞如今的第三大移民來源國——印度的移民數量近年來也出現了下降，本年度降幅為6%，移民總數為21768人。
Australia's image in India was tarnished by a string of brutal Indian student bashings in 2009, while Canberra has also cracked down on disreputable vocational education schools that were temporarily used by foreign students, including those from India, to attain working visas.
澳大利亞在印度的形象，因2009年一系列在澳印度學生遭暴力襲擊事件而受到了破壞。與此同時，澳洲政府還對外國學生（包括來自印度的學生）暫時選擇就讀，以獲取工作簽證的不良職業教育學校進行了取締。
Chris Bowen, the Australian immigration minister, said the bulk of the new arrivals in the 2010-11 migration programme were skilled workers.
澳大利亞移民部長克里斯•鮑恩(Chris Bowen)表示，2010-11年移民計劃吸納的移民，大多數都是熟練工人。
“Skilled migrants deliver significant benefits … as their employment contributes to economic growth and their relative youth offsets some of the impacts of the ageing labour force,” he said.
“熟練工移民為澳大利亞經濟帶來了重大利益……他們的工作為經濟增長做出了貢獻，而且他們相對年輕，這抵消了澳大利亞勞動力老齡化的部分影響，”他表示。
Mr Bowen is locked in a legal battle over Canberra's plan to deport 800 asylum seekers entering Australian waters illegally by boat to Malaysia in exchange for 4,000 of its refugees.
鮑恩眼下還忙著一起有關澳政府遣送難民的法律訴訟。澳政府計劃將乘船進入澳洲水域尋求政治避難的800名非法偷渡客，遣送回馬來西亞，以交換馬來西亞的4000名難民。
The top occupations in the skilled migrants stream were accountants, computing professionals, cooks and registered nurses.
熟練工移民中，排名最靠前的幾個職業分別是會計師、計算機專業人士、廚師以及註冊護士。
譯者/何黎
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American manufacturing
A factory in rural Georgia helps East Asia eat
Aug 13th 2011 | AMERICUS | from the print edition
American wood meets Chinese food ASK someone to write down all the differences between China and rural Georgia and his hand will fall off before he’s halfway done. So let us restrict ourselves to the vista: cranes, skyscrapers, spanking new rail networks and smog: China. Barbecue restaurants, red clay and trees: Georgia. And whereas most rural Georgians are surviving quite well, thank you, without skyscrapers and subways, Chinese diners, who go through billions of disposable wooden chopsticks each year, could use a few more trees.
Enter Georgia Chopsticks. Jae Lee, a former scrap-metal exporter, saw an opportunity and began turning out chopsticks for the Chinese market late last year. He and his co-owner, David Hughes, make their chopsticks from poplar and sweet-gum trees, which have the requisite flexibility and toughness, and are abundant throughout Georgia.
In May Georgia Chopsticks moved to larger premises in Americus, a location that offered room to grow, inexpensive facilities and a willing workforce. Sumter County, of which Americus is the seat, has an unemployment rate of more than 12%. Georgia Chopsticks now employs 81 people turning out 2m chopsticks a day. By year’s end Mr Lee and Mr Hughes hope to increase their workforce to 150, and dream of building a “manufacturing incubator” to help foreign firms take advantage of Georgia’s workforce and raw materials.
But that is some way off. For now Messrs Lee and Hughes, and their workers, keep busy shearing, steaming, shaving, cutting and drying huge logs into rough chopsticks. They still need to be finished—to eat with a pair of Georgia Chopsticks right off the Americus line you would need tweezers in your other hand and a high pain tolerance. For that they are shipped via the Port of Savannah to China (later this year they will start sending them to Korea and Japan) in boxes with a rare and prestigious stamp: Made in the USA.
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