Games are afoot(正在酝酿中) at Mattel. In recent weeks the business behind Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels cars, which has seen its market value plunge by 20% this year, has replaced its chief executive and much of its leadership team.(近几周，芭比娃娃和风火轮小汽车背后的公司更换了首席执行官和大部分领导团队，其市值今年已暴跌20%。) Big shareholders are calling for a sale. Interested buyers are said to include Zuru, a maker of water pistols, and Authentic Brands, custodian(托管方；管理者) of trademarks from Care Bears to Juicy Couture. Mattel’s new boss is instead counting on(指望；依靠) remaking it from a traditional toymaker into a buzzy(热闹时髦的) entertainment firm.
美泰公司正在酝酿大动作。近几周，这家芭比娃娃和风火轮小汽车背后的公司更换了首席执行官和大部分领导团队，其市值今年已暴跌20%。大股东们呼吁出售公司。据说有意收购的买家包括水枪制造商Zuru，以及从爱心熊到橘滋等商标的托管方Authentic Brands。然而，美泰的新老板却指望将公司从传统玩具制造商改造为一家热闹时髦的娱乐公司。
It is a bad time for producers of playthings(玩具). The Iran war has sent commodity prices soaring(导致大宗商品价格飙升). Toys of the sort Mattel makes require plastic, and plastic requires crude oil. Parents, feeling the pinch(感受到经济压力) from inflation, are turning stingy(吝啬的). In a recent survey by Mintel, a research firm, 65% of toy buyers said price is now their top consideration. Many are turning to retailers’ cheaper own-brand(自有品牌) alternatives.
对玩具制造商来说，眼下是艰难时期。伊朗战争导致大宗商品价格飙升。美泰生产的这类玩具需要塑料，而塑料需要原油。感受到通胀压力的家长们正变得吝啬。研究公司英敏特最近的一项调查显示，65%的玩具买家表示价格现在是他们的首要考虑因素。许多人转向零售商更便宜的自有品牌替代品。
The challenges go deeper still(还有更深层的问题). Anthony Bonadio of Wells Fargo, a bank, reckon(认为；估计)s the industry is in structural decline(结构性衰退). Birth rates are falling and children are abandoning toys at ever-younger ages. On average, American children aged between eight and 18 spend 7.5 hours per day on screens, leaving little time for physical toys.(平均而言，8至18岁的美国儿童每天花7.5小时看屏幕，留给实体玩具的时间少之又少。)
挑战远不止于此。富国银行的分析师安东尼·博纳迪奥认为，该行业正处于结构性衰退。出生率在下降，孩子们越来越早地抛弃玩具。平均而言，8至18岁的美国儿童每天花7.5小时看屏幕，留给实体玩具的时间少之又少。