奢侈品牌结队逃离阿根廷（节选）

    “参与上周游行示威的中产阶级是本国政治生活中的中坚力量，”政治分析家罗森多•弗拉加说。“这次抗议显示，他们现在已经与政府拉开了距离。”

    根据世界银行（World Bank）的估计，阿根廷的经济今年仍然可望增长2.2%，不过仍然远低于去年将近9%的增长率。

    包括法国服装品牌鳄鱼（Lacoste）和黑莓手机制造商Research in Motion在内的一些公司已经在当地开设工厂，在该国生产或组装产品。但对绝大多数国际品牌来说，阿根廷市场的规模还不足以支持这样的行动，更不用说当地工人的工资还处于该地区最高水平。

    政府去年实施的最具争议性的措施之一就是要求进口产品的公司同时出口作为补偿，这就导致了千奇百怪的企业合作，比如高档汽车生产商与当地葡萄酒出口商的结盟，或者奢侈品牌零售商与木材出口公司的合作。

    由于进口部件的短缺，汽车厂商菲亚特（Fiat）和雷诺（Renault）今年都不得不减缓生产。

    管制让许多国际公司别无选择，而费尔南德斯总统的政府早该预料到这种状况的发生。不过到目前为止，不管是全球品牌的退出还是国民的不满都无法让政府改弦更张。

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    "The middle class that demonstrated last week is a key social segment in the country's political makeup," says political analyst Rosendo Fraga. "And this protest shows that those voters are now distancing themselves from the government."

    Argentina's economy is still on track to expand 2.2% this year, according to the World Bank, down from almost 9% in 2011.

    Some companies, such as French apparel company Lacoste and Research in Motion (RIMM), the maker of the Blackberry smartphone, have set up local factories to produce or assemble some of their products in the country.

    But for the large majority of international brands, the scale of the Argentine market does not warrant such a move, especially considering that the wages of local workers are the highest in the region.

    One of the most controversial measures the government imposed last year was to require that companies importing products compensate with exports of their own, prompting unusual partnerships such as a luxury car makers teaming up with local wine exporters or a luxury brand retailer establishing a partnership with a wool-exporting company.

    Carmakers Fiat and Renault this year both had to slow down production due to a shortage of imported parts.

    The controls have left little choice for many international companies – a choice the Fernandez administration must have known would likely happen. So far, though, neither the departure of the global brands nor the dissatisfaction of the Argentine people is enough to matter.