HONG KONG — After five years of tightening monetary policy to fight inflation, China abruptly reversed course Monday, cutting interest rates and easing bank lending restrictions in response to signs that growth in the Chinese economy was slowing.
中国在连续5年采取从紧的货币政策对抗通涨之后，突然在周一改弦易辙，降低利率和放松对银行贷款的限制，这主要是为了回应中国经济中的放缓迹象。
China’s restrictions on large movements of money in and out of the country and its immense reserves of foreign currency have insulated its financial markets from the troubles shaking Wall Street. But this has not been enough to protect China from a global economic downturn.中国对大规模流入和流出中国的资金的限制和其庞大的外汇储备使得其金融市场可以避免受到动荡不安的华尔街股市的影响，但这并不足以保护中国不受全球经济下滑的影响。
China’s exports have slowed sharply, particularly when adjusted for inflation and expressed in China’s currency. Real estate prices are weakening, particularly in coastal cities that depend on exports, and China’s stock market has lost three-fifths of its value since October. 中国出口大幅下挫，尤其是在将通涨因素计入并且以人民币计算之后更是如此。房地产价格也在走弱，尤其是在依靠出口的沿海地区，中国的股市市值相对于10月的水平来说已经蒸发了3/5.
Since 2003, China’s top economic priority has been to control inflation. But China’s Politburo, the country’s highest decision-making body, decided at a meeting on July 25 that the top economic goals should shift to sustaining economic development and limiting inflation, in that order.从2003年以来，中国首要的经济任务就是控制通涨，但是中共中央政治局，也是中国最高决策机构在6月25日的一次会议上决定最高经济目标应该转移到保增长控通涨，也就是保增长为先这样的顺序。
The People’s Bank of China, the country’s central bank, echoed the Politburo on Monday in announcing the new direction of monetary policy.中国人民银行，也是中国的央行在周一宣布了新的货币政策走向回应了政治局的决定。
The central bank said in a statement that the goal of the policy shift was to “solve prominent problems in the current economic operation, implement the principle of giving different policies for different needs and optimizing the economic structure, and ensure a steady, rapid and sustained development.”人行在一份声明中指出其政策转变的主要目的市解决目前经济运行中存在的突出问题，针对不同的需求实行不同的政策，优化经济结构保证经济平稳、快速和持续增长。
Stock exchanges here were closed Monday for a holiday. The central bank has a history of announcing important monetary policy shifts over weekends or public holidays, often giving advance warning so banks have more time to prepare.中国股市周一因为放假休市一天。央行一直以来有在周末或公共假期宣布重要货币政策转型的传统，这样会给银行一些提前预警可以有充分时间应对。
Western economists welcomed Monday’s moves toward lower interest rates and less stringent limits on lending.西方经济学家欢迎周一调低利率和放松贷款限制的政策走向。
“We see these adjustments as a positive step given the unprecedented uncertainties in the international financial markets and rising downside risks in the domestic economy, in particular the real estate sector,” Goldman Sachs said in a research note.Goldman Sachs 在一份研究报告中指出，我们认为这些调整是必要的，因为目前全球金融市场正在经历前所未有的不确定性和国内经济不断增加的下挫风险，尤其是房地产业。
The technical details of Monday’s monetary policy changes were complex.周一货币政策转变的技术细节也十分复杂。
Effective Tuesday, the People’s Bank of China lowered by 0.27 percent, to 7.2 percent, the regulated benchmark rate that commercial banks may charge for one-year loans to business borrowers with strong credit histories. Rates for shorter-term loans will be generally cut even more while rates for longer-term loans will be subject to smaller adjustments, the central bank said, without providing details.周二即将生效的是：人行对商业银行一年期贷款利率下调0.27％，下降到7.2%,条件是贷款对象信用优秀。短期贷款利率会降低但是长期利率的下调幅度很小，央行并没有公布细节。
The central bank also lowered by a full percentage point the share of assets that small and medium-size banks must deposit as reserves with the central bank, effective Sept. 25. The so-called reserve requirement ratio is an important tool in China for limiting how much money can be lent by commercial banks.
央行也下调了中小银行必须放在央行的存款准备金率，幅度为1个百分点，这将从9月25日开始生效。所谓的存款准备金率是中国一种非常重要的货币政策工具，可以限制商业银行放贷的金额。
The central bank had rapidly ratcheted up the ratio from 6 percent in August 2003, to 14.5 percent in December and 17.5 percent in June.央行曾经3次大幅提高存款准备金率，2003年8月是6％，到12月的14.5%到6月的17.5%.
But the People’s Bank of China made a point on Monday of not lowering the reserve requirement ratio on Monday for the country’s six largest banks. These are the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the Agricultural Bank of China, the Bank of China, the China Construction Bank, the Bank of Communications and the Postal Savings Bank of China.但是周一央行指出并没有对全国6家大银行降低存款准备金率，这6家银行是中国工商银行，中国农业银行，中国银行，中国建设银行和中国交通银行和邮政储蓄银行。
These institutions account for more than two-thirds of the banking market in China. The central bank needs large sums of reserves, for which it pays 1.89 percent interest to the banks, so that it can continue buying large sums of foreign exchange reserves.这些机构占到中国银行市场的2/3强，央行也需要大量的储备，央行只需支付1.89%的利率，这样就可以持续的大量购买外汇储备。
By buying tens of billions of dollars worth of foreign currency each month, the Beijing authorities have been able to limit the rise of China’s currency, the yuan, against the dollar. This has preserved much of the competitiveness of Chinese exports, although the weakening of North American and European economies has still hurt demand for Chinese goods.每个月购买大量的数百亿外汇储备，北京就能够控制人民币针对美元的升值，这保存了中国出口的竞争力，尽管美国和欧洲经济的衰退会影响到对中国出口的需求。
The People’s Bank of China is in discussions with the finance ministry for an injection of capital, which would strengthen the central bank’s balance sheet and make it easier for the central bank to reduce the reserve requirement ratio.人行目前正在和财政部商量注资的问题，注资可以帮助央行平衡帐目，使得央行可以在调低存款准备金率时减少所要面对的压力。
The central bank also cut this ratio by 2 percentage points for banks in areas damaged by the Sichuan province earthquake on May 12.央行曾经下调了遭受512大地震的四川地区的银行的存款准备金率。