馬云聽到了美國選民在今年的大選中傳遞的信息。他不以為然。

不久前，馬云在聯合國主辦的一個全球貿易討論會上指出，西方對全球化的猜疑加重毫無道理。這位億萬富翁說：“許多人都說全球化不好，而且貿易保護主義正在抬頭。我相信全球化是好的，但還不完善。受益的只有富國和大國。”

馬云表示，他的公司阿里巴巴集團就生動展現了怎樣通過互聯網經濟來打破舊的全球貿易模式。他說，100年前，全球貿易由十幾個國王和皇帝控制；在過去50年里，主導全球貿易的是大約60家大公司。在中國，阿里巴巴已經幫助數以百萬計的創業者建立了自己的事業。他相信自己可以把這種模式帶到全球其他地區，進而幫助普通人致富。他們所需要的，只是一個互聯網賬號，以及對新事業的全身心投入。

馬云建議創立世界貿易電子平臺（e-WTP），這樣做有助于把全球貿易的爭論焦點從大型跨國公司轉移到小企業家身上。該平臺的目標是減輕法規給小型出口商帶來的負擔，從而降低跨境貿易成本，而途徑之一就是消除跨國貿易壁壘。馬云指出：“我們需要只針對小企業的特別法規。”他還說， 在21世紀，創業精神就如同20世紀的電力，將成為發展中國家經濟增長的重要推動力。

毫無疑問，馬云和阿里巴巴發掘的創業精神讓中國受益匪淺，而且美國也有可能從類似的潮流中受益。但馬云并未說明究竟該采取哪些具體措施來改變美國選民對自由貿易價值的看法，并激勵深化貿易關系所需的政治意愿。

2016年大選明確體現了許多美國人的看法，其中一部分覺得全球一體化進程讓自己吃了虧，另一部分則不相信領導人簽署的貿易協議能提高其生活水平。無論這些觀點是否合理，各國領導人都還沒辦法敲定貿易協議，比如正在商討的《跨太平洋伙伴關系協定》(TPP)。在這種情況下，很難想象他們將簽署一項新的貿易協議。 (財富中文網)

譯者：Charlie

審校：夏林

Jack Ma hears the message American voters are sending in this election, and he doesn’t like it.

During a discussion on global trade at the United Nations on Tuesday evening, Ma argued that the increased skepticism of globalization in the West is unwarranted. “Many people say that globalization is bad and protectionism is rising,” the billionaire said. “I believe that globalization is good, but it’s not complete. Only rich countries and large companies have benefited.”

Ma argued that his company, Alibaba BABA 4.43% , is a prime example of how the Internet economy can be leveraged to break the old model of global trade. 100 years ago, Ma said, global trade was controlled by a dozen kings and emperors, and over the last 50 years, it has been dominated by sixty or so large companies. In China, he argued, Alibaba has helped millions of entrepreneurs launch businesses, and he believes he can bring this model to the rest of the globe, helping everyday people thrive with nothing but an internet account and a dedication to new venture.

Ma has proposed the creation of an Electronic World Trade Platform, or e-WTP, which would shift the focus of the debate over global trade from large multinational companies to small entrepreneurs. The goal of such a framework would be to lower the costs of trading across borders by making regulations for small exporters less burdensome, partially through the breaking down of trade barriers across countries. “We need special rules for small businesses only,” Ma argued, adding that for the developing world, entrepreneurship in the 21st century will be as vital to development as electricity was in the 20th.

There’s no doubt that China has benefited greatly from the entrepreneurship that Ma and Alibaba have unlocked, and that the United States could benefit from a similar jolt. But Ma didn’t address what exactly would change American voters’ minds about the value of free trade, and spur the political will needed to deepen trade ties.

The 2016 election has laid bare a consensus among many Americans who feel they have been shortchanged by increasing global integration, and who don’t trust their leaders to sign trade deals that will cause their standards of living to rise. Regardless of whether these feelings are valid, it’s difficult to see how global leaders will sign on to a new trade initiative when they can’t even finalize ongoing trade deals, like the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which is already being negotiated.