2, they collect many vivid and typical examples for further studies. 3, they provide some useful methods for English financial news translation. However, compared with scholars in other fields of news translation, people engaged in this field are too few. And fewer of them make an overall study on the financial news translation.
Anyhow, these studies are really helpful for us to know the characters of financial news and they also pave a road for the overall study of financial news translation.
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Chapter Three Features of English Financial News
English financial news, as a special kind of news, has some of its own features. Only when we have a good command of these features can we analyze the translation strategies of it, so now we shall study the features of headlines and bodies respectively.
3.1 Features of Headlines
As an indispensable part of news, headlines are compared to the ―eye‖ of news. Here are several definitions of news headlines:
(1) A head of a newspaper story or article usually printed in large type and devised to summarize the story or article that follows (Jake, 1996:76).
(2) A head of a newspaper story or article usually printed in large type and devised to summarize, give essential information about, or interest readers in reading the story or article that follows. (Webster's Third New International Dictionary, 1961:1042)
(3)Newspaper headline is used to summarize and comment on news contents so as to help readers comprehend news. (Fowler, 1991:56)
According to Harrison Jack, from the standpoint of the readers, newspaper headlines serve the following purposes (Jack, 1996:141):
—To tell the news by the headline alone —To index the news
—To convey the relative significance of the news —To transmit the relative seriousness of the news —To produce attractive effects —To attract potential readers.
From the definition and purpose of the news headlines, it is not difficult for us to summarize the function of news headlines as follows:
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—To advertise the news —To summarize the news content —To facelift the newspaper format
Financial news is a special kind of news. Therefore the functions of headlines are also true of the financial news headlines. In order to fulfill these functions and purposes, financial news headlines have some of their own features. Before analyzing the translation strategies, we shall have knowledges of features of financial news. In order to inform readers of more information, the news media always try all means to save room. This requires the headlines to fulfill their functions with as little room as possible.
As a result, news headlines require a high degree of brevity. This requirement determines the first feature of news headlines: conciseness. To be very brief and concise, the financial news headlines tend to make some omissions, use abbreviations, and use small words to replace big words.
3.1.1 Omission
1. Omission of articles
Korea raises key rate to 5-year high (=Korea raises key rate to a 5-year high)
Largest energy company in Hungary takes practical approach to Russia (=The largest energy company in Hungary takes a practical approach to Russia) German unemployment falls to near six-year low (=The German unemployment falls to a near six-year low) High gas pump prices no longer deter U.S. drivers
(=The high gas pump prices no longer deter the U.S. drivers) Spanish airline receives takeover offer (=The Spanish airline receives a takeover offer)
2. Omission of conjunction
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German unemployment falls, fueling price fears (=German unemployment falls, and fueling price fears)
Nation frees up leading rates, central bank tries to balance supply, demand (=Nation frees up leading rates, and central bank tries to balance supply, and demand)
Billion-dollar boomers, babies (=Billion-dollar boomers, and babies)
3. Omission of link verb The Fawlty inhospitality (=The Fawlty is inhospitality) A new service blacklist numbers (=A new service is blacklist numbers) Russia pessimistic on WTO admission this year (=Russia is Pessimistic on WTO admission this year) A dent in Toyota quality? (= Is dent in Toyota quality?)
4. Omission of auxiliary verbs German optimism clouded by 2007 (=German optimism was clouded by 2007) Optimism fading on global trade deal (=Optimism is fading on global trade deal)
3.1.2 Replacing Long Words with Short Words
To make full use of the limited room as well as give readers enough information, financial news headlines tend to use short words to replace long ones. These short words have a vivid name in news headlines ―synonyms of all work‖. These words used in headlines have two advantages. Firstly, they help to save room, to avoid
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dividing one headline into two lines. Thus make the layout more beautiful. Secondly, the short words and midget words have much larger category, and they are more flexible, lively, thus they are better to attract the readers‘ eyeballs, and persuade them into reading the bodies of the financial news.
These words in English are usually of one or two syllables, almost never more than three, they are mostly verbs and nouns, which have no exact synonyms and each of which is equal to a whole phrase. Here are some examples:
1. GM trims future costs
The news is about: General Motors, the world‘s largest automaker, tries to reduce the pension benefits of its staff to restore profits. Here trim replace longer expression cut down/reduce.
2. As world tourism booms, the US falls behind
According to the news, here boom means become prosperous, and gets a lot of market share. The word boom not only helps to save room, but also makes the headline vivid.
Similar examples:
3. UK budget cuts corporate and personal income tax (cut=reduce)
4. High gas pump price no longer deter U.S. drivers (deter=threaten)
3.1.3 Unique Use of Tenses
Nowadays, the competitions of economy between countries are becoming fiercer, just as a saying goes: doing business is similar to fighting on the battle. How can people win the business? An important thing is to gain financial information as quickly as possible. For this reason, financial news requires a high degree of timeliness. However, when the news goes to public, the financial events reported must have taken place, so if the financial news reporters want to catch the readers‘ eyeballs, they should give the readers a sense of freshness, immediacy and reality. Besides, the
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