奢侈品牌结队逃离阿根廷（节选）

    面对进口壁垒、外汇管制和通胀狂飙，众多奢侈品零售商开始逃离阿根廷。

    由于严苛的进口限制甚至让专卖店都无法备货，美国品牌拉夫•劳伦（Ralph Lauren）上个月宣布将关闭位于首都布宜诺斯艾利斯的三家门店，其中包括在贵族区雷科莱塔的旗舰店，成为退出大军的最新成员。

    为了应对该国日益艰巨的营业环境，埃麦尼吉尔多•杰尼亚（Ermenegildo Zegna）、爱斯卡达（Escada）和CK内衣（Calvin Klein Underwear）都已经停业或者大幅收缩经营。据当地媒体报道，法国珠宝品牌卡地亚（Cartier）也计划在下个月关门大吉。

    出于维持不断萎缩的贸易顺差的考虑，克里斯蒂娜•费尔南德斯总统去年晚些时候加紧了对进口的控制。越来越多的阿根廷人试图用比索来兑换美元，以保护其储蓄不被位列全球最高水平的通胀所吞噬，但他们的努力也因为政府对外汇管制的加强而付之东流。

    而随着阿根廷物价上涨，再加上欧洲游客由于本土经济危机而减少出游，在过去十年曾经红极一时的旅游业也风光不再。

    面对物价飙升、市场对本币信心不足和贸易顺差一路下滑的挑战，政府只有祭出贸易保护主义的大旗，不得已的退出凸显了外国公司在阿根廷的艰难处境。

    “情况很复杂，”前财政部官员米格尔•基格尔是一名经济学家，现任EconViews咨询公司董事。他指出：“公司无法进口正常运作所需的货物。此外，随着国内物价上涨，旅游业也在不断萎缩。”

    对于有着“拉美巴黎”美誉的布宜诺斯艾利斯，失去这些国际知名品牌也让该城的环球风情黯然失色。

    “这些店铺优雅又堂皇，”全阿根廷最具巴黎风情的阿尔韦亚尔大道就在雷科莱塔区，上周末在那里逛店的克里斯蒂娜•毕达宁不由得感叹道。“真舍不得它们离开。”

    拉夫•劳伦在声明中宣称只是暂时关门，但并未说明是否以及何时重新开张。

    去年，中央银行外汇储备缩水超过10%之后，即使民众还在兑换处排队购买美元，阿根廷仍然实施了外汇管制。由于在2001年高达950亿美元的债务违约后一直无法在国际市场发行债券，该国亟需这些外汇储备来偿还外债。

    政府基本上禁止了外国公司将利润汇出境外，以减少对外汇的需求。国民也被禁止购买外汇，迫使许多人在暑假前放弃了出国旅游的计划。

    随着经济放缓以及通胀持续削弱购买力，民众的不安情绪与外汇管制共同作用，沉重打击了费尔南德斯总统的支持率。当地民意调查公司Management & Fit指出，当前有72%的阿根廷人不满意政府在经济事务上的表现。

    由于金融管制被许多人视为对个人自由的限制，成千上万的阿根廷人在上周走上街头，敲锣打鼓地抗议物价上涨和犯罪行为猖獗。这是费尔南德斯总统任职四年多以来遇到的最大挑战。

    虽然总统试图淡化此次示威的影响，当地分析人士却认为这是她总统生涯的转折时刻。

    A slew of luxury goods retailers are leaving Argentina in response to import barriers, currency controls and soaring inflation.

    American designer Ralph Lauren was the most recent departure when it announced last month that it was closing three of its stores in Buenos Aires, including its flagship in the upscale Recoleta district, as draconian measures on imports have all but left it unable to stock its shelves.

    Ermenegildo Zegna, Escada, and Calvin Klein Underwear had already closed or reduced operations sharply in response to the growing challenges to doing business in the country. Local media outlets reported French jewelry boutique Cartier is planning to follow suit next month.

    President Cristina Fernández late last year tightened controls on imports to protect a dwindling trade surplus. Her administration also restricted access to foreign currency to prevent growing ranks of Argentines from trading their pesos for U.S. dollars to protect their savings from one of the highest inflation rates in the world.

    Tourism, which has boomed in the past decade, has slowed down as Argentina became more expensive and many Europeans limited travel due to a tougher economic climate at home.

    The moves underscore the growing difficulties facing foreign companies in Argentina, where the government has resorted to protectionism to address challenges such as soaring internal prices, a reduced confidence in its currency and an eroding trade surplus.

    "It's a complicated scenario," says economist Miguel Kiguel, director of EconViews consultancy and a former Argentine finance secretary. "Companies can't bring the products they need to function normally. On top of that, tourism has dwindled as the country became more expensive."

    For the city of Buenos Aires, sometimes referred to as the "Paris of Latin America," losing blue-chip international brands is a blow to the city's international flair.

    "These stores are so elegant and glamorous," said shopper Cristina Beltrame, walking down the Alvear Avenue, the most Parisian of Argentine streets in the Recoleta neighborhood, last weekend. "It's sad to see them go."

    Ralph Lauren said in a statement that the closing was temporary but did not specify if and when it planned to reopen its stores.

    Argentina imposed controls last year after Central Bank currency reserves shrank by more than 10% as Argentines lined up in front of exchange houses to buy U.S. dollars. The country, which has been unable to tap international debt markets since its $95 billion debt default in 2001, needs the reserves to pay off debt.

    The government has all but banned international companies from remitting profits overseas in a bid to reduce the demand for international currency. Argentines are also prevented from buying foreign currencies, forcing many to ditch their international travel plans ahead of the summer season.

    The foreign currency controls and a growing sense of malaise, as the economy slows and inflation continues to erode purchasing power, have cut deeply into the popularity of President Fernandez. Local polling firm Management & Fit said 72% of Argentines currently disapprove of the way the government is managing the economy.

    In response to the financial controls, perceived by many as a restriction of their personal freedoms, hundreds of thousands of Argentines took to the streets last week banging pots and pans and chanting against price increases and growing crime, in the biggest challenge to Fernandez presidency in more than four years.

    While the President tried to play down the importance of the demonstration, local analysts view it as a watershed moment in her presidency.