Bad stuff happens in September. For some reason, it is a month that has had more than its fair share of(多得不成比例) financial crises, perhaps because problems that have been bubbling away(暗中酝酿) come into sharper focus(变得更加清晰) once the summer holidays are over. Britain came off the Gold Standard(金本位制) in September 1931. The pound was turfed out of Europe’s Exchange Rate Mechanism in September 1992. And 18 years ago this week, the collapse of Lehman Brothers(雷曼兄弟倒闭) plunged(使陷入) the global economy into deep recession.
坏事总在九月发生。不知为何，这个月份遭遇的金融危机格外多，或许是因为夏日假期一结束，那些一直在暗中发酵的问题便骤然清晰起来。1931年9月，英国脱离金本位。1992年9月，英镑被逐出欧洲汇率机制。而18年前的这一周，雷曼兄弟的倒闭将全球经济拖入深度衰退。
This September, there are again reasons to be nervous. There are soaring(飙升的) oil prices, which are feeding through into(传导至) higher petrol and diesel prices, adding to cost of living pressures. There is a sell-off(抛售) in government bonds(政府债券) around the world. There is the warning from AI bosses that it would be wise to slow the pace of development in their industry.(AI企业高管警告称，明智之举是放缓行业发展步伐。) Mixed together, they are the ingredients for(……的要素/配方) another troubled September.
今年九月，人们再次有理由感到紧张。油价飙升，正传导至汽油和柴油价格上涨，进一步加剧生活成本压力。全球政府债券遭遇抛售。AI企业高管警告称，明智之举是放缓行业发展步伐。这些因素交织在一起，构成了又一个动荡九月的配方。
Of course, it may all be a false alarm(虚惊一场). It is now more than six months since the US and Israel launched their war against Iran and so far the impact of closing the strait of Hormuz(霍尔木兹海峡) has been far less severe than was expected back in the spring. It is possible the fear currently gripping(笼罩、攫住) bond markets will quickly pass, especially if the wars in Ukraine and Iran end soon.
当然，这一切或许只是虚惊一场。美国和以色列对伊朗开战已逾六个月，迄今为止，霍尔木兹海峡关闭造成的影响远没有春季预期的那么严重。目前笼罩债券市场的恐慌情绪有可能很快消散，尤其是如果乌克兰和伊朗的战争能早日结束的话。