[分享]外贸英语汉译英赏析

(1) We would like to point out that in this market, the competition is fierce. In order to succeed in selling your products, your quotation needs to be attractive. Otherwise, it will be difficult.

There are five clauses in this sentence, each with a different grammatical function. In Chinese, the clauses can be connected by commas, but in English, clauses with different grammatical functions need to be reflected in the sentence structure and conjunctions. This is an important point in translating from Chinese to English. In other words, while Chinese uses four commas to separate the five clauses, English does not. Instead, it uses conjunctions to indicate the relationships between the clauses.

For example, the reason behind "pointing out" can be seen as "competition," or the logical conclusion of "competition" can be "pointing out." Therefore, there are at least two possible translations for this sentence:
1) We would like to point out that because of the fierce competition in our market, your quotation must be attractive to the buyers in order for us to successfully sell your products.
2) The fierce competition in the local market here means that, it seems obvious to us, it would be difficult for us to promote the successful sale of your products if your quotation is not attractive to our end-users here.

Considering all five sentences together, a different perspective can be taken in translation:
We would like to point out that your quotation needs to be attractive to the buyers here; otherwise, it will be difficult for us to sell your products in this competitive market.
"Market competition is fierce" can be translated as "fierce/harsh/competitive market."