A brief overview of how our general translation skills can benefit from knowing how to render economic texts.

1. Olga Łabendowicz, MA
Specialized
Translation
#1
Economic Translation

2. DefinitionDefinition
The collective expression “economic translation”
includes the translation of various texts on
finances, banking, accounting, taxation,
insurance, trade, and economics.
http://forditas-szakforditas.hu/en

3. Translation of economic and bankingTranslation of economic and banking
textstexts
The topic of economic translations is very wide and includes translation materials of
different economic topics – management reports of companies, expert
evaluations, banking texts, price quotes, training materials, public procurement,
real estate and insurance documents, etc.
More specific economic texts require translators with an economic
background, while wide knowledge and good language skills will
suffice for translating general economic texts.
In the current economic context, with increasing transactions between countries, it
has become essential to find effective and efficient strategies to translate, editessential to find effective and efficient strategies to translate, edit
and even technically rewrite or adapt business and economic texts from Englishand even technically rewrite or adapt business and economic texts from English,
primarily, into less spoken languages, and vice versa.
http://avatar.ee/en/translation/translation-of-economic-and-banking-texts/

4. What's going on?What's going on?
Why is it difficult?
How can a translator
overcome such problems?
What are the problems on the way
of translation of economic texts?

5. Despite the great number of words and terms that English borrowed
in the past, new terms are constantly being created in the domainnew terms are constantly being created in the domain
of economicsof economics, as the current economic and financial developments
across the Atlantic (or in the EU)across the Atlantic (or in the EU) are the ones that influence markets
in the rest of the world.
The translation of economic texts is rather difficult, since there exists
a wide range of the unspecific and unreliable terminology that
lags behind the fast-paced development in the field. Authors
and translators virtually mass-produce new, unique
expressions that are not always suitable for the intended
purpose.
An additional difficulty is the difference between the terminologydifference between the terminology
used in the United States, and in certain countries of Europe.
Why is it difficult?
in other words, no techniquein other words, no technique
can substitute for factualcan substitute for factual
knowledge and there can beknowledge and there can be
no translationno translation
without understandingwithout understanding
of meaningof meaning

6. What are the problems on the way
of translation of economic texts?
Byrne (2010, p.26) argues that instead of translation we should
nowadays use the term ‘ interlingual technical communication’interlingual technical communication’,
and not simply ‘technical writing’ but even text ‘re-engineering’text ‘re-engineering’,
depending on the skoposskopos (aim) (Nord, 1997) of the target text, as
this is often the best approach in the process of creating a newthis is often the best approach in the process of creating a new
document of technical nature rather than staying close to thedocument of technical nature rather than staying close to the
source textsource text (as is the case with literary works, in which style,
paralinguistic and extralinguistic features have also to be
considered).

7. What are the problems on the way
of translation of economic texts?
The need for constistency
Non-fiction requires uniform and clearly comprehensible terms
and equivalences in the target language.
Therefore, although it is not a critical error to use the terms
‘Euro-area’ and ‘Eurozone’ interchangeably (cf. Gikas and Tagkas, 2010),
it would be completely wrong to translate ‘DTL’ (Deferred Tax
Liabilities=Rezerwa z tytułu odroczonego podatku dochodowego)
(cf.Poterba et al., 2007)
as ‘postponed’ or ‘put off’ ‘obligations’
ignoring the need for consistency while, in the meantime, ‘drowning’ in
the sea of synonymous signifiers.
Make a choice
and
stick to it

8. It is for that reason that quality control should involve the
co-operation of a translator with an expertco-operation of a translator with an expert in the relative
field (i.e. economist, accountant, lawyer, etc.)before thebefore the
final ‘product’ is submitted to the clientfinal ‘product’ is submitted to the client.
In other words, if the translator aims to act as a reliable
‘target-language writer’, he/she sometimes has to ‘askask
experts’ or the client, the author, and anyone who canexperts’ or the client, the author, and anyone who can
play the role of an experienced ‘source-language reader’play the role of an experienced ‘source-language reader’
(Robinson, 1997, p.164), whenever the translatorwhenever the translator
encounters difficulties in acting out both rolesencounters difficulties in acting out both roles.
What are the problems on the way
of translation of economic texts?

9. 1) In several cases, the foreign term is used within parenthesesthe foreign term is used within parentheses, so as
to ensure that the term or equivalence used in the target text is
recognized, as it may be a neologisma neologism that has unsuccessfully been
introduced in the target language.
2) Make sure you know the difference between price, value and cost as
well as the difference between profit and margin. Also be aware ofbe aware of
so-called “false friends”so-called “false friends”.
'economic development' is 'rozwój gospodarczy' rather than 'rozwój ekonomiczny'; numbers
(see next slides)
3) Compare your translation with similar texts on the topic (official
documents: EU directives, official statements by ministries,
government, economic think tanks, etc.)
General adviceGeneral advice: never to forget the limits of your knowledge and to
take every opportunity to expand these limits
How can a translator
overcome such problems?
TechnicaTechnica
l termsl terms

10. How can a translator
overcome such problems?
NumbersNumbers
Find out more:Find out more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/about-us/style-book/1435301/Telegraph-style-book-http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/about-us/style-book/1435301/Telegraph-style-book-
numbers-measures-and-money.htmlnumbers-measures-and-money.html

11. How can a translator
overcome such problems?
NumbersNumbers
commas+commas+
pointspoints

12. How can a translator
overcome such problems?
CurrencieCurrencie
ss

13. DIY #1DIY #1Translate what's in
bold
This policy paper is focused on the problems
connected with implementation of the EU
legislation within national states and deals with a
phenomenon of gold-plating, which occurs in the
process of the adoption of the European legislation in
the EU member states. The term itself primarily refers
to an increased level of regulatory burden that is
adopted at the national level beyond the minimum
requirements of the EU legislation.
dokument programowy
implementacja/wdrażanie
prawo UE
nadmierna regulacja (ang. gold-
plating)
kraje/państwa członkowskie UE
obciążenia regulacujne
na szczeblu krajowym

14. DIY #2DIY #2Translate what's in
bold
China has been slowly liberalising rates for well over a
decade. First, it allowed banks to set lending rates above
its benchmark. Then, it eliminated the floor on lending rates
too. In recent years, it started raising the ceiling on deposit
rates.
stopy procentowe
stopy oprocentowania
kredytów
stopy depozytowe

15. DIY #3DIY #3Translate what's in
bold
Intra-budgetary redistribution of the Personal Income
Tax creates the following problems:
After redistribution, donor municipalities face less favourable
fiscal fortunes than the supported municipalities.
The incentives for economically weaker municipalities to seek their
own policies to improve their economic, financial and social
situation are diminishing, because such an improvement may
result in a loss of additional Personal Income Tax revenue
from redistribution.
Redystrybucja wewn trzą
systemu finansów publicznych
podatek dochodowy od osób
fizycznych
samorz dy-darczy cyą ń
samorz dy korzystaj ce zeą ą
wsparcia
przychód podatku
dochodowego od osób
fizycznych

16. DIY #4DIY #4Translate what's in
bold
Alcohol Excise and the Shadow Economy in
Bulgaria
One reason why there has been no change in the price of
illegal alcohol can be explained by the change in competition
on the market. Over this time period, the volume of the
illegal alcohol market has shrunk from 2.1mln litres to
1.4mln litres, which corresponds to €15.7mln and
€10.8mln respectively.
akcyza na alkohol
szara strefa
2,1 mln litrów
1,4 mln litrów
15,7 mln EUR
10,8 mln EUR

17. DIY #4DIY #4Translate
$560 billion
$1 quintillion
+0.2%
-2.1%
-1.0%
560 miliardów dolarów/560
mld USD
trylion dolarów
+0,2%
-2,1%
-1,0%

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