口译时事：如何投资一条收费公路

　　FOR MOST OF US, a toll road is just another expense. But for a family with vast resources and a long investment horizon, it can be something quite different: a source of income.
　　在我们中的大多数人看来，收费公路不过意味着又一项开销。但对一个拥有大量资源和长期投资眼光的家庭来说，它却有着截然不同的意义──那可是一项投资收入来源。

　　In growing numbers, rich families are investing in infrastructure, putting their money to work on remote mountaintops, bustling harbors and across deserts the world over. This broad category covers the structures and systems needed to keep economies running and growing. So think highways, public transit, power plants, telecom backbones─and don't forget schools, hospitals, dumpsites and ports. 'We see it all the time,' says Alan Harter, of Pactolus Private Wealth Management, a registered investment adviser in McLean, Va.

　　越来越多的富裕家庭正在对基础设施建设进行投资。他们把资金投向全球偏远的山区、忙碌的港口和茫茫沙漠上的建设项目。这一领域十分广泛，涵盖了为保持经济运行和增长所需的设施和系统建设，有公路、公共交通系统、发电厂、电信主干线──也别忘了学校、医院、垃圾处理厂和港口。弗吉尼亚州麦克莱恩(McLean)的注册投资顾问、Pactolus私人财富管理公司(Pactolus Private Wealth Management)的阿兰 哈特(Alan Harter)说：“我们一直在关注这些领域。”哈特的公司管理着大约4.3亿美元资产。

　　Most wealthy families get into infrastructure the same way other investors do: indirectly. They buy stock in multinationals whose wares and services generally accompany development─outfits like Caterpillar, Haliburton and IBM . But some are making direct investments. These hands-on deals can involve private-investor groups that come together to build or buy projects and operate them over a relatively long period.

　　图表：基建投资增长曲线：美国vs.全球与其他投资者一样，大多数富裕家庭采用间接投资的方式进入基础设施建设领域。他们买入卡特彼勒(Caterpillar)、哈里伯顿(Haliburton)和IBM等跨国公司的股票──基础设施建设的开展通常离不开这些公司提供的产品和服务。不过也有人选择直接投资。这些由投资者亲自操作的项目可能涉及私人投资者团体，他们一同建设或买下项目，并在一段相对较长的时间里运营这些项目。

　　The Presidio Parkway, a six-lane toll road that will connect the city of San Francisco to the Golden Gate Bridge, is one project that some private investor groups are considering. In another case, Citi Infrastructure Investors, Ullico and J.P. Morgan Asset Management Infrastructure Investments Group have been looking at putting money into Chicago-area projects. One deal calls for spending up to $225 million to reduce energy consumption at municipal facilities. The savings initially would be used to pay back the private investors with interest.

　　新普雷西迪奥风景公路(Presidio Parkway)是一条拟建的连接旧金山市和金门大桥(Golden Gate Bridge)的六车道收费公路，一些私人投资者团体正在考虑这个项目。与此同时，花旗基础设施投资者基金(Citi Infrastructure Investors)、Ullico和摩根大通资产管理基础设施投资集团(J.P. Morgan Asset Management Infrastructure Investments Group)则一直打算把资金投向芝加哥地区的项目。其中一个项目需投入高达2.25亿美元用于市政设施的节能改造，而通过节能省下来的钱，将首先用于偿付私人投资者的资金和利息。

　　Some of the infrastructure investors─Harter calls them 'uber bulge bracket families'─still run businesses that made them rich. Infrastructure is central to their wealth-building strategies; securities can account for as little as 15 percent of their portfolios, says Harter. Some are still steamed about the stock market in 2008, which saw the average U.S. millionaire's securities portfolio shed about 30 percent of its value, according to research firm Spectrem Group. This distrust sometimes extends to other alternatives. 'Our clients look distastefully on blind-pool' investments such as hedge funds, says Harter, whose firm manages about $430 million.

　　一些基础设施建设投资者仍在运营着曾使他们致富的事业。哈特将他们称为“超级投行家庭”(uber bulge bracket families)。哈特说，基础设施建设投资是这些人财富积累策略的核心，而证券可能只占他们投资组合中的15%。调研公司斯佩特兰集团(Spectrem Group)称，一些人仍然对2008年股市的表现耿耿于怀。那一年，美国百万富翁人群的证券投资组合的价值平均缩水大约30%。有时，这种不信任感也会殃及其他替代产品。哈特说，“我们的客户对净壳公司(blind-pool)一类的投资并不感兴趣”──比如对冲基金。

　　They also want in on growth in emerging markets, where many of these projects are occurring. But they want to get in on it first-hand, in keeping with a post-2008 move toward assets you can hold or walk on─gold, collectibles like wine and art, and types of construction and real estate that seem likely to produce cash over long periods.

　　如今，新兴市场中有很多这样的项目，投资者也想从新兴市场的增长中分一杯羹。不过他们想要亲身参与其中──2008年后，投资者转而追捧那些可以持有或是实实在在的资产，比如黄金、葡萄酒和艺术品等收藏品，以及那些可以产生长期现金收益的建筑和房产。

　　But there's a bigger impetus for this burgeoning interest in infrastructure investing, says David Friedman of Wealth-X, a marketing consultancy to firms with rich customers: The families involved tend to think they're better at making money than garden-variety investment managers. 'They want their wealth managers to hedge risk around a liquid portfolio' in the name of capital preservation, says Friedman. But to generate steadier and bigger returns over time 'they want to put risk capital in things they know.'

　　Wealth-X的大卫 弗里德曼(David Friedman)为一些拥有富人客户的公司提供营销顾问服务，他说，在这股对基础设施投资猛增的兴趣背后还有一个更大的推动力。他说，这些家庭通常认为他们比一般的投资经理更懂得如何赚钱。弗里德曼说，出于保全资本的目的，“他们希望自己的理财经理通过易变现的投资组合来对冲风险”，但为了在一段时间内获得更稳定、更丰厚的回报，“他们会把风险资本投向自己熟悉的领域”。

　　So a family that's willing to plunk down $15 million to go thirds on a container dock in Djibouti is apt to know something about piers already, or the Horn of Africa, or both─or be in close cahoots with people who do. For these projects, cash-out doesn't come in 10 years and it's not predicated on a sale. These investors measure investment return in terms of cash flow through the operating life of a project, or for an agreed-on period that's likely to span decades, says Harter. Indeed, one U.S. family is eight years into a multi-country waterworks deal that has yet to pay a dime, says Norman Anderson, of CG/LA Infrastructure, a Washington, D.C.-based firm that develops projects around the world.

　　这就是说，一个愿意砸下1500万美金与另外两家出资者共同参与吉布提(Djibouti)集装箱码头项目的家庭，要么是对码头建设或非洲之角(Horn of Africa)多少有些了解(或者是对两者都有了解)，要么就是正在和内行人紧密合作。在这些项目的运作中，10年内不能撤资，且项目也不会出售。哈特说，这些投资者会根据一个项目的运营周期、或是一段经过商定的可能长达数十年时间内的现金流来衡量投资回报。CG/LA Infrastructure的诺曼 安德森(Norman Anderson)说，我确实知道，有个美国家庭参与一个跨国供水系统项目已长达八年，但至今尚未获得分文回报。CG/LA Infrastructure的总部位于华盛顿，该公司在全球范围开发项目。

　　This kind of patience calls for deep pockets. Management fees and the occasional need to retain local experts can also add to the cost. But David Doll offers a reservation beyond hefty antes and long lockdowns. 'These deals are fraught with 'translation errors,' ' says Doll, who runs Sequent Asset Management in Houston, an investment-advice firm for the ultra-rich that manages $400 million. 'You're talking about different accounting standards, different business practices.' Unstable local governments can be another risk.

　　拥有这种耐心需要雄厚的资本。管理费和临时雇佣当地专家的开销都会导致成本增加。而大卫 多尔(David Doll)提出了除了赌注过重和资金长期被锁定之外另一个需要考虑的问题。他说：“这些项目充满了‘解释偏差’，你们在谈论的是不同的会计标准和不同的业务惯例。”当地政府的不稳定也会是一个风险。多尔在休斯敦运营一家为富豪提供投资建议的公司Sequent Asset Management，该公司管理着4亿美元资产。

　　Given all the complications, direct infrastructure strikes Anderson as an expensive way to get an 8 percent or 12 percent return on investments─the standard range, he says. You also don't get a break on the toll, even if you own the road.

　　安德森说，若将所有这些复杂因素考虑在内，在他看来，为获得8%到12%的投资回报率──这是比较常见的回报率水平──直接投资基础设施可是个昂贵的选择。即便你拥有这条收费公路，还是一样躲不过收费站。

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