The elephant in a boom
崛起中的大象
America is courting India in part for its growing economic clout
印度经济影响力日增促使美国示好
- court 表示“为有所求而试图取悦、讨好、献殷勤”或“试图获得、争取博得”（参见：熟词僻义 | court 是一种怎样的冒险？）
- clout （尤指政治、经济方面的）影响力、权势（参见：小词详解 | clout）
But a young population may not be enough to sustain rapid growth
但仅凭年轻的劳动人口可能不足以维持经济快速增长
Few visitors can expect the sort of welcome Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister, will receive in Washington later this month. Joe Biden, America’s president, is throwing a formal banquet for him at the White House. The leaders of the two chambers of Congress, not to be outdone, have invited him to address a joint session for the second time—an honour previously accorded only to the likes of Winston Churchill. The visit will, in the words of a gushing White House press release, “affirm the deep and close partnership between the United States and India”.
印度总理莫迪在6月底访问美国。很少有出访者能像他一样，在华盛顿受到如此高规格的欢迎。美国总统拜登将在白宫为他举办正式宴会。国会参众两院的领导人也不甘示弱，邀请他第二次在两院联席会议上发表演讲——此前只有丘吉尔等人获此殊荣。用白宫新闻发布会上的溢美之词来说，此次访问将是对“美印之间深厚而密切的伙伴关系的确认”。
- 拓展学习：熟词僻义 | 经济学人的 Leaders 栏目是讲各国领导人的吗？
- outdone 胜过、优于
- gushing 过分热情的、过分赞扬的、夸张地表现感情的
In fact, the partnership between India and America has never been that deep or close. But America’s leaders, both Republican and Democratic, would like it to be. They see India as an indispensable accomplice in their rivalry with China. After all, India recently became the world’s most populous country. Its foreign policy has become more assertive and more hostile to China of late, even if it remains opposed to the idea of an American-led order. Its diaspora is the world’s biggest, and remarkably influential. But India’s allure also rests on the sense that its economy may at last be starting to fulfil its potential. It is already the world’s fifth-biggest. Mr Modi has promised growth of a sort that would turn it into a pillar of the world economy, on a par with America, China or the European Union. Despite the many failings of his government’s economic management, it is not an implausible target.
事实上，印度和美国的伙伴关系从未这般深厚或密切。不过这样的关系却是美国的共和、民主两党的领导人所乐见的。他们视印度为与中国的竞争中不可或缺的帮手。毕竟，印度不久前刚成为世界上人口最多的国家。近来它的外交政策变得更强硬，对中国也更敌对，尽管它仍然反对由美国主导世界秩序。它的侨民人数为世界之最，且影响力非同一般。但印度的吸引力还在于，人们认为它可能终于要发挥自己的经济潜力了。如今它已是世界第五大经济体。莫迪承诺要实现足够的经济增长，让印度成为世界经济的支柱，与美国、中国或欧盟并驾齐驱。尽管他的政府在经济管理上有诸多失策，这并非一个不可实现的目标。
- indispensable 指“不可或缺的、必不可少的”，比小站前不久推送的 requisite 语气更强更紧迫，常用搭配 indispensable to sb/sth 或 indispensable for (doing) sth 明确表明若缺少所限定的事物，就无法完成想要达到的目的，也就是强调绝对必要性（参见：本周《经济学人》封面用 indispensable 形容美印关系）
- accomplice 表示“共犯、帮凶、同谋”，主要指与他人一起参与不法或不道德行为的人，无论是作为主犯、教唆犯还是从犯（参见：小词详解 | accomplice）
- diaspora （犹太人的）大流散；（任何民族的）大移居
- implausible 似乎不合情理的、不像真实的（参见：小词详解 | plausible）
India’s economy will boom, Mr Modi’s lieutenants argue, because of its young workforce, muscular industrial policy and the opportunities presented by Western firms’ sudden wariness of China. Many high-flying businessmen are persuaded. Tim Cook, Apple’s boss, who has just opened its first store in India, declared to investors last month, “The dynamism in the market, the vibrancy, are unbelievable…India is at a tipping point.” Days later Foxconn, a Taiwanese electronics firm, broke ground on a $500m factory. India’s GDP grew by 6.1% in the first quarter, year-on-year. Investment as a share of GDP is at its highest for over a decade.
莫迪的副手们认为，得益于年轻的劳动人口、强有力的产业政策，以及西方公司对中国的警惕心骤生所带来的机遇，印度经济将会蓬勃发展。许多商界大腕也认同这一点。苹果不久前刚在印度开设了第一家门店，其老板蒂姆·库克5月对投资者宣称：“印度市场生气勃勃，这种活力令人难以置信……印度正处于一个转折点。”几天后，富士康耗资五亿美元的工厂在印度破土动工。印度第一季度GDP同比增长6.1%。投资占GDP的比重达到了十多年来的最高水平。
- lieutenant 助理；（尤指）副职（参见：小词详解 | lieutenant）
- wariness 小心、谨慎、留神、提防、小心翼翼（拓展学习：小词详解 | wary）
- tipping point （个案积累终成大趋势的）引爆点、爆发点
