Shoppers are scrimping. Sales of consumer durables fell by 10-15% in the year to March 2012, executives say.

消费者越来越省吃俭用。管理层说，今年到三月间，耐用品的销量下降了10%至15%。

Asked about the latest consumer durable, many men said, “I don't need one, my wife is my washing machine.”

每当被问到最新的耐用消费品时，很多男人会说：“我不需要，我老婆就是个洗衣机。”

Purchases of other consumer durables have shown more signs of life.

其他耐用消费品的购买也显示出更多的复苏迹象。

Weak spending on consumer durables may also reflect property-market woes, which have depressed furniture and white-goods sales.

耐用消费品支出疲软也可能反映出房地产市场的困境，房地产市场的困境导致家具和白色家电的销售下降。

Therefore private investment is tentative, purchases of consumer durables are weak and bank deposits are unusually high, as people self-insure against an uncertain future.

因此，私人投资是试探性的，耐用消费品的购买疲软， 银行存款异常高，因为人们对不确定的未来进行自我保险。