2020年美國GDP萎縮3.5% 爲二戰結束以來最差“成績”

美國政府1月28日公佈的數據顯示，去年第四季度美國國內生產總值（GDP）按年率計算增長4%，2020年全年GDP萎縮3.5%，是2009年以來首次下跌，也是1946年以來最大跌幅。

The US economy contracted 3.5 percent in 2020 amid COVID-19 fallout, the largest annual decline of US gross domestic product (GDP) since 1946, according to data released by the US Commerce Department on Thursday.

美國商務部1月28日公佈的數據顯示，受新冠疫情影響，2020年美國經濟萎縮3.5%，爲1946年以來美國國內生產總值最大年度跌幅。

The estimated drop in GDP for 2020 was the first such decline since a 2.5% fall in 2009. That was the deepest annual setback since the economy shrank 11.6% in 1946.

該數據是美國GDP自2009年萎縮2.5%以來首次下跌，同時也是1946年美國經濟萎縮11.6%以來最慘重的年度經濟倒退。

The data also showed that the US economy grew at an annual rate of 4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020 amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, slower than 33.4 percent in the previous quarter.

數據還顯示，在新冠肺炎確診病例激增的情況下，2020年第四季度美國經濟年增長率爲4%，而在2020年第三季度美國經濟反彈33.4%。

The economy fell into recession in February, a month before the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic.

2020年2月，世界衛生組織宣佈新冠肺炎爲大流行病的前一個月，美國經濟陷入衰退。

The economy contracted at a post-Depression record 31.4% in the second quarter then rebounded to a 33.4% gain in the following three months.

2020年第二季度美國GDP暴跌31.4%，創下大蕭條時期以來的最大降幅，隨後第三季度反彈33.4%。

Thursday’s report was the Commerce Department’s initial estimate of growth for the quarter.

1月28日公佈的這份報告是美國商務部對2020年第四季度經濟增長的初步估計。

"The increase in fourth quarter GDP reflected both the continued economic recovery from the sharp declines earlier in the year and the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including new restrictions and closures that took effect in some areas of the United States," the department said in a statement.

美國商務部在一份聲明中表示：“2020年第四季度GDP的增長既反映了美國經濟從去年早些時候的大幅下滑中持續復甦，也反映了新冠疫情的持續影響，包括美國一些地區生效的新限制和封鎖措施。”

Despite a partial economic rebound in the second half of last year, the US economy shrank 3.5 percent for the whole year of 2020, compared with an increase of 2.2 percent in 2019, according to the department.

美國商務部稱，儘管去年下半年美國經濟出現了部分反彈，但2020年全年美國經濟萎縮3.5%，而2019年美國經濟增長2.2%。

The data came as the United States has recorded more than 25.6 million COVID-19 cases with over 430,000 related deaths as of Thursday morning, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University.

根據約翰斯·霍普金斯大學的統計，截至1月28日上午，美國新冠肺炎確診病例超過2560萬例，死亡人數超過43萬。

Also Thursday, the Labor Department reported that first-time claims for jobless benefits totaled 847,000 last week

同樣在1月28日，美國勞工部報告稱，上週首次申請失業救濟的人數總計84.7萬人。

The outlook for 2021 remains hazy. Economists warn that a sustained recovery won't likely take hold until vaccines are distributed and administered nationwide and government-enacted rescue aid spreads through the economy — a process likely to take months. In the meantime, millions of Americans continue to struggle.

美國2021年的經濟預期仍然不明朗。經濟學家警告說，除非在全國範圍內分發接種新冠疫苗，並且開展政府主導的經濟援助，否則持續復甦將難以實現。然而，這一過程可能需要數月時間，在此期間，數百萬的美國人將繼續掙扎求生。

hazy [ˈheɪzi]：adj.朦朧的；模糊的

“Growth is likely to be very weak in the first quarter of 2021, below 1% annualized,” said Gus Faucher, chief economist at PNC. “With record-high caseloads early in the year consumers have turned more cautious and states have re-imposed additional restrictions on economic activity, although in a more targeted fashion than in the early stages of the pandemic.”

美國PNC金融服務集團首席經濟學家格斯·福徹說：“2021年第一季度的經濟增長可能非常疲弱，按年率計算可能低於1%。今年年初的病例數量達到新高，消費者變得更加謹慎，各州也重新對經濟活動施加了額外的限制，儘管這種限制比疫情早期階段更具針對性。”

“There’s nothing more important to the economy now than people getting vaccinated,” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday.

美聯儲主席傑羅姆·鮑威爾1月27日說：“現在對經濟來說，沒有什麼比人們接種疫苗更重要了。”

“There is good evidence to support a stronger economy in the second half of this year,” he added, though he noted “considerable risks” to the forecast depending on the path of the virus.

他補充說，“有充分的證據支持今年下半年經濟走強”，不過他指出，根據疫情的發展，這種預測存在“相當大的風險”。