【摘要】2013英语四六级在即，精品学习网小编在此为大家编辑了“英语六级外刊阅读练习：为何廉价零售如此蓬勃”，供大家参考，希望对四六级考生有所帮助。祝大家取得理想的成绩!
本篇阅读材料“为何廉价零售如此蓬勃”选自《经济学人》(原文标题：Why a low-price retailer is thriving)，如果大家觉得比较简单，就当作泛读材料了解了解，认识几个新单词或新表达方式也不错。如果大家觉得这些材料理解上有难度，不妨当做挑战自己的拔高训练，希望大家都有进步^^
Business
商业报道
Mercadona
梅尔卡多纳
Spanish aisles
西班牙走廊
Why a low-price retailer is thriving
为何廉价零售如此蓬勃
FEW domestic firms are prospering in crisis-racked Spain, but Mercadona is.
在经历经济危机的创伤之后，西班牙很少有几家国内企业能够恢复兴旺发展，然而梅尔卡多纳除外。
Spain's largest supermarket by sales has enjoyed double-digit growth for most of the pastdecade.
过去十年中，西班牙最大的销售型超市在大部分时间呈两位数增长。
When Juan Roig, the chairman, took over in 1981, Mercadona had only eight shops, all in Valencia.
1981年，胡安.罗伊上任主席，任职之初，梅尔卡多纳仅有8间店铺，并且全部都在巴伦西亚。
Today it has 1,310 and annual sales of 16.5 billion $23.8 billion.
而今，它有1310家连锁店，年销售额达到165亿欧元合238亿美金。
Spain's economic troubles seem to have made it stronger.
西班牙的经济问题似乎反而让它变的更为强大。
Profits dipped in 2009, but surged again by 47% in 2010 after some forceful cost-cutting.
2009年，经济效益下滑，但是在2010年完成了一些强有力的成本削减后，又激增了47%。
Mercadona's strength is low prices.
梅尔卡多纳的优势在低价。
The family-owned chain does not fritter away cash on advertising.
家族式连锁不会在广告费用上造成任何浪费。
It mercilessly squeezes the suppliers of its own-brand products.
它不遗余力地要求供应商做自己的品牌的产品。
These suppliers, of which there are about 100, put up with Mercadona's squeezing because they have a long-term relationship with the company and have grown with it.
而将近100家的供应商为了与这家公司长期合作，也为了得到长远的发展，不得不接受受梅尔卡多纳的要求。
Since 2009 Mercadona has shaved 2.2 billion of costs from its products, often with simple adjustments such as reducing packaging.
自2009年以来，梅尔卡多纳利用自有品牌削减了22亿欧元的成本，并且不时地做些简单的调整，如减少包装成本等措施。
Tight relationships with its suppliers foster innovation.
与供应商的无间合作促使革新。
For example, sticking a plastic lid on a large tin of tuna made it easier to open and increased its sales by 60% in 2010.