Let’s first state the obvious: Translators need to have a way with words and an ability to understand what they’re translating.
The problem with financial translation arises differently, since financial and economic terminology is shaped by the everyday and comprises neologisms as well as metonymies. It is also features collocations.
It’s necessary to take a closer look at all these aspects so that we can better understand how challenging financial and economic translation is, and the difficult task facing translators, who are not always experts in the field.
Financial translation: the here and now
The stock market is often described as being something which is alive: it can be “in full swing”, “turned around”, “fall”, “pick up again”. You also read expressions like a “match made in heaven” and a “tempting offer” used…
This requires readers’ to use their linguistic and cultural baggage. Here are just a couple examples of French expressions modelled on more French common sayings “Quand TIBCO Software va, Reuters va…” (Quand le bâtiment va, tout va…) and “Tout corps plongé dans le CAC40 subit une pression de bas en haut” (a tip of the hat to Archimedes, perhaps?).
It uses warlike metaphors (“the crossfire of serious dollar versus yen fire fights”), health-related metaphors (“the benign economic conditions of these years”), weather-related metaphors (“the early warning signs of a financial tsunami, financial meltdown”). The economy can “shutdown” and “thrive”.
Such terms enable small-time investors to understand the market, a result of “internet economics”, which popularised concepts that, in the past, had only been used by specialists.
Such journalistic expressions destined to popularise notions can’t be found, however, in documents like annual reports, economic studies and press releases issued by central banks. The phraseology used in such corporate documents tends to be a lot more technical. You can read things like “conducting a liquidity-absorbing fine-tuning operation”, which might seem like gibberish to a novice!
It is also constantly changing. No other field of translation creates as many neologisms.
Neologisms in the finance sector
In French, numerous terms are borrowed from English, including: “le marketing”, “le management”, “le back office”. A French commission is tasked with finding French equivalents for these terms. But French speakers are hesitant to use terms like “post-marché” instead of “back office”, especially given that other countries have yet to address language development. Perhaps it’s worth stating (with a cheeky grin, of course) that Italians talk about “Il mouse del computer”J. Linguistic policies vary greatly.
In French, basic terms such as “start-up”, “stock options” and the verb “performer” are all anglicisms.
Keeping a close eye on the news and having the right documentation
Financial translators need to keep in constant touch with the market and the terminology used. They should have relevant documentation for understanding complex concepts and market movements (specialist newspapers and magazines as well as TV and Internet).
Keeping abreast with the latest news can help understand some texts as well as hidden meanings. Translators should boast an in-depth understanding of their area of expertise and be able to simplify it, thereby making it understandable for all.
Metonymy and economic and financial translation
French speakers struggle with repetitions, unlike English speakers. Metonymy is a figure of speech in which a thing or concept is called not by its own name but rather by the name of something associated in meaning with it. This means it’s used a lot in financial and economic spheres.
As such, “dollar” can be replaced by “greenback, “euro” by “single currency”, “Japan” by “land of the rising sun”, “Europe” by “Old World, etc.
Collocation, the stock market and translation
Collocation is a sequence of words or terms that co-occur more often than would be expected by chance E.g. vigorous growth, buoyant market, economic downturn, and many others, should have an equivalent in the target language.
Flexible terms
This field of translation also has its fair share of flexible terms, whose meaning changes depending on the context: “universe” (used to describe a whole “markets universe”), “environment” (something of a stopgap term used a lot in translation), “outlook” (“perspective” or “conjoncture” in French?), year (“année” or “exercice” in French?)
Financial translation: a difficult and expensive task
Very few translators have the ability to understand and translate financial and economic documents. It requires a great deal of expertise if the translations are to be effective in the target language. As a result, and just like all things scarce, financial translation, due to the small number of specialists, is more expensive than non-specialised translation.
CG Traduction & Interprétation has spent the last 35 years recruiting the very best translators and interpreters around to work hand in hand with the financial sector and deliver outstanding quality. You can place your trust in CG – we deliver every time.