Tehran and Beijing are in talks about using a barter system to exchange Iranian oil for Chinese goods and services, as US financial sanctions have blocked China from paying at least $20bn for oil imports.

　　伊朗和中国正就采用一套易货交易制度(barter system)进行商谈，准备用伊朗的石油换取中国的商品和服务。目前，美国的金融制裁，导致中国无法为进口石油向伊朗支付起码200亿美元。

　　The US sanctions against Iran, which make it extremely difficult to conduct dollar-denominated business, mean that China could owe the oil-rich nation as much as $30bn, according to people familiar with the problem.

　　美国对伊朗的制裁行动，使各方极难开展以美元结账的业务。知情人士称，这意味着中国可能欠伊朗这个富油国家多达300亿美元。

　　They said the unpaid oil bills had built up over the past two years and the governments, which are in early-stage talks, were looking at how to “offset” the debt.

　　他们表示，未偿付的石油账单在过去两年里越积越多，正举行早期商谈的伊朗和中国政府，正在设法“抵消”这笔债务。

　　Some Iranian officials are growing increasingly angry about the inability of the country’s largest oil customers to pay cash, a problem that has contributed to a shortage of hard currency and has hindered the central bank from defending the Iranian rial, which has been sharply devalued over the past month.

　　对于伊朗的各大石油客户无法支付现金，该国一些官员越来越感到愤怒，这个问题加剧了伊朗硬通货短缺的困境，并妨碍了该国央行捍卫伊朗里亚尔的能力；过去一个月里，伊朗里亚尔出现大幅贬值。

　　China and India together buy about one-third of Iran’s oil, the country’s economic lifeblood. China’s oil imports from Iran have risen 49 per cent this year, according to Reuters.

　　石油是伊朗的经济命脉所在。中国和印度两国加在一起合计购买了伊朗大约三分之一的石油。路透社(Reuters)数据显示，今年中国从伊朗进口的石油增加了49%。

　　Iran last week threatened to cut off oil exports to India, which owes $5bn for oil but has not been able to move the money out of an?escrow?account.

　　上周，伊朗威胁要切断对印度的石油出口。印度欠伊朗50亿美元的石油款项，但迄今不能从一个代管账户进行支付。

　　Unlike India, which exports almost nothing to Iran, China is dominant in Iranian business and could use a barter system to balance trade between the two countries. Beijing is involved in everything from building tunnels to exporting toys and has been expanding into Iran’s oil sector, where European companies such as Shell and Total have been deterred by the difficulties of operating without contravening sanctions.

　　印度对伊朗几乎没有任何出口。与此不同的是，中国在伊朗商界占有主导地位，可利用一套易货交易制度来平衡两国之间的贸易。目前中国全方位地参与伊朗经济，从修建隧道，到出口玩具，并且在扩张进入伊朗石油行业——欧洲石油巨擘如壳牌(Shell)和道达尔(Total)已从伊朗“知难而退”，意识到难以在遵守制裁规定的前提下开展经营。

　　China and Iran’s bilateral trade totalled $29.3bn last year, up almost 40 per cent from 2009. The two countries this month signed several infrastructure and trade collaboration agreements that would see Chinese companies invest in big infrastructure projects in Iran, while Iran would export large quantities of chrome ore to China, according to local reports. 去年，中国与伊朗的双边贸易总共达到293亿美元，比2009年增长近40%。

　　本月，两国签署了多份基础设施和贸易合作协议。据两国媒体报道，根据这些协议，中国企业将投资于伊朗的一些大型基础设施项目，而伊朗将向中国出口大量铬矿砂。

　　“Both China and India are happy to keep Iran’s money in their banks and try to get Iran involved in barter deals to sell their junk, or give yuan and rupees instead of hard currencies,” said one Iranian former official, on condition of anonymity. Iran had not yet accepted the alternatives, he added.

　　“中国和印度两国都乐于把欠伊朗的资金留在它们本国的银行里，同时试图推动伊朗达成易货交易，以便销售它们的垃圾货，或者向伊朗支付人民币和卢比而非硬通货，”一位要求匿名的伊朗前官员表示。他补充说，伊朗尚未接受任何替代方案。

　　Repeated sets of US financial sanctions, imposed in response to Iran’s continued defiance over its nuclear programme, have had a crippling effect on the country’s banking sector. Another former official said that Iran was holding up adequately, thanks in no small part to high oil prices.

　　针对伊朗在本国核计划问题上的持续不妥协，美国出台了一套又一套金融制裁措施，这些措施已对伊朗银行业造成了沉重打击。另一位伊朗前官员则表示，伊朗的处境还不错，这在很大程度上得益于高油价。