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课件网) Never Mind the Internet. Here’s What’s Killing Malls 别怪互联网，这才是商场衰败的原因 Despite a strong consumer economy, physical retailers closed more than 9,000 stores in 2019 — more than the total in 2018, which surpassed the record of 2017. It is easy to chalk it up to the rise of e-commerce, which has thrived while physical stores struggle. But this can be overstated. Internet shopping still represents only 11% of the entire retail sales total. 尽管美国消费经济强劲，但实体零售商在2019年关闭了9000多家门店，超过2018年的关店总数，并打破了2017年的纪录。实体店举步维艰之际，电子商务却蓬勃发展，因而人们很容易将“关店潮”归咎于电商的兴起。但这可能言过其实，毕竟网络购物在整体零售总额中的占比仍仅为11%。 Collectively, three major economic forces have had an even bigger impact on brick-and-mortar retail than the Internet has. 三大经济力量合在一起，对实体零售的影响甚至超过了互联网。 Big Box Stores: In the US and elsewhere, we have changed where we shop — away from smaller stores like those in malls and toward stand-alone “Big Box” stores. The economists found that the rise of warehouse clubs and supercenters was bigger than the rise of online commerce. 大型百货商场：不论是在美国还是其它地方，我们购物的场所已经发生了改变。人们更少光顾购物中心里那些较小的商店，转而青睐独立运作的“大卖场”。经济学家发现，仓储式会员店和特大购物中心的崛起要比电子商务的兴起更为显著。 Income Inequality: Rising income inequality has left less of the nation’s money in the hands of the middle class, and the traditional retail stores that cater to them have suffered. 这收入不平等：收入差距的扩大让这个国家中产阶级手中的财富变少，服务于中产阶级的传统零售业也随之遭殃。 Services Instead of Things: With every passing decade, Americans have spent proportionately less of income on things and more on services. 服务消费胜过商品支出：每过去十年，美国人在商品上的支出都相应减少，而服务上的花费则相应增加。 In short, the broad forces hitting retail are more a lesson in economics than in the power of disruptive technology. 简而言之，让零售业受到冲击的普遍因素，更多是来自经济学的教训，而非颠覆性的科技力量。 外刊时文精选精读精练 考纲单词和短语精练： 1. _____ 没关系，不要紧（used to urge someone not to feel anxiety or distress） Well, _____, I can buy you another one. 没关系，我再给你买一个。 2. _____ 将某事归因于某一原因（_____/_____） 3. _____ vi. 蓬勃发展，茁壮成长 4. _____ vt. 夸张言过其实_____ vt.声称，表达（_____/_____） 5. _____ 数字/百分比 构成，组成（_____/_____） _____ vt. 代表 The new offer _____ an increase of 10% on the previous one. 这轮新的报价比上一次报价高出10%。 6. _____ adv. 总的来说（_____/_____） _____ vt. 集合，聚集 _____ adj. 集体的，共同的 _____ 集体的智慧 _____ 集体的努力 7. _____ 实体零售业 _____ 实体零售商 _____ n. 砖头 mortar n. 灰泥 _____ 实体店铺 8. _____ 大型零售商店（a retail store that occupies an enormous amount of physical space and offers a variety of products to its consumers） 9. _____ 某物 ... ...
