Part I Introduction.doc

Part I BUSINESS LETTERS 商务函电 With the rapid development of Chinas international trade and the constant increase of othereconomic activities with foreign countries, businesses in China have strengthened the ties withforeign companies. Business letters are one of the most important and constantly used means ofcommunication. Its main function is to inform or remind the counterpart or the public of a certainthing and also ask them to act according to the rules written in the letters.Although nowadays people tend to use less conventional and more friendly style in businessletter writing, the layout still follows in some way the usual practice in international business. So it is important to learn the set pattern so as to be more flexible in future writing.1. Contents and ways of writing (主要内容和写法)There are seven parts in an ordinary business letter:1-letterhead2-reference number and date3-inside name and address4-salutation5-massage6-complimentary close7-signatureSome letters may contain one or more of the following, which depend on the different situation of each writing requirement:8-reference notation9-attention line10-subject line11-enclosure12-carbon copy13-postscript1) letterhead (信头)Letterheads usually include the essential information about the writer-name, address, cable address, telex number, etc. The writing of the address should be stressed as it is totally different from Chinese ones. The number and the street should be put at the beginning while the city and country be put at the end. For example, 中国广东省广州市天河街14号” should be translated into “No.14 Tianhe Street,Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China”.2) date（日期）As for the date, it is usually put one or two lines under the letterhead on the right for the purpose of filing or checking. Simple ways of writing are: March 4,2005/March 4th, 2005/4th March, 2005/4 March, 2005. Avoid using “8/28/05” or “2005.8.28”.3) inside name and address (封内名称和地址)It will be the same as in the envelope, which shall be the name and address of receiver. But when some companies use name of the owner as part of the company name, “Messrs” will be added before the name, for example, “Messrs Bob& Michael Trading Co.”4) salutation (称呼) Salutation in business letter is different from that in Chinese or ordinary English letters. “Dear” is used to express respect here, for example, “Dear Mr. Perton”. Sometimes the letter is not address-ed to a specific person, then “Dear sir(s)”, “Gentleman(men)” are used. This part is placed on the left under the inside name and address.5) message (正文) Message is the part the writer expresses his idea or requirements. Usually, it is divided into three parts: opening, body and closing. Opening is to give the reason of writing, body is to specify his requirements and wishes while closing is to express thanks or hope. The contents of body will vary with the specific step of business. There are two main kinds of layout here: indented one with the first line of each paragraph indented and blocked one with all lines on the left. 6) complimentary close (结束语) There are many ways of complementary close to show respect. It carries no specific meaning. Usually we keep them in pace with the salutation. When the salutation is “Dear sir(s)”, complimentary close will be “yours faithfully, yours sincerely”; when salutation uses “Gentleman(men)”, complimentary close will be “yours truly, truly yours”, etc. 7) signature (签名)It is usually printed and written ones, the place of which will depend on the layout of the letter. We put signature under the complimentary close with title under it. If the writer represents certain institute, the name of the institute will be printed above the signature, for example:Yours truly, Yours faithfully,(signature) MITSUBISHI CORPORATION(Miss) Lucy Steinbeck (signature) Thomas C. Sutton General Manager, Sales Department8) reference notation (参考案号) In business letters, reference is often made to previous letter. It may include the date of the letter, a file number, the contract number, L/C number or the initials of the signer of the letter and take the form as “Our ref.” and “your ref.”9) attention (送交)When the writer wants to address the letter to a special person or corporation, he will add it under the inside name and address. It usually takes the form like “Attention: The Advertising Manager”(由广告经理亲阅)10) subject line (标题)It is usually the order or contract number or the name of the goods to enable receiver to be clear of the contents in the letter and for the purpose of filing. It is put under the salutation and before the message. 11) enclosure (附录) Sometimes catalogue, pricelist, order, copies of fax or other relative documents will be enclosed in the letter, then under the signature a line on the left will be added to remind the receiver, for example, enclosure: 3 copies/ encl. as stated 12) carbon copy (抄送) It is to show the letter has been sent to someone in charge of this, for example “c.c.Manager”. It is placed under the enclosure on the left.13) postscript (附言)It takes the short form of “ P.S.” with something forgotten in the letter. Sometimes one more part will appear in the letter, it takes the form of “C/O: in care of”(由。转交), for example, Prof. Henry K. Wenger C/o Mr. Michael L. Mogan 2. Layout (格式)There are three main layouts of the business letter: indented form, blocked form and combined form. The first two are illustrated as below with different parts of the letter in place.建议：下面两个图可以缩在一页上。Indented form (缩进式) Letterhead信头 Date日期 Inside name and address封内名称地址- Attention (送交)Salutation称呼 Subject 标题Message正文- -。 Complimentary close结尾敬语 Signature 签名- - - Enclosure (附录) Carbon copy (抄送) Postscript (另)Blocked form (齐头式) Letterhead信头 Date日期Inside name and address封内名称地址-Attention (送交)Salutation称呼Subject 标题Message正文-Complimentary close结尾敬语 Signature签名- Enclosure (附录) Carbon copy (抄送) Postscript (附言) There are two main differences between the indented form and blocked form:l : the place of date and complimentary close and signaturel the writing of body So the combined form mixes the two differences, it can use the place of indented form and the writing of body of blocked form, or the place of blocked form but the writing of body of indented form.3. Envelope（信封）The writing of envelope corresponds to the form of letter. When the letter takes indented form, the envelope will have the same while if the letter takes the blocked form, the envelope will be the blocked form. The writing is shown as follows: 下面的图如能把两个缩成并列就好了Indented form: the writers name and address receivers name and address - - - the writers name and address receivers name and address - - -Blocked form: the senders name and address receivers name and address - - -4. Parts of the letter (信件部分)As mentioned before, a letter is divided into 3 parts: opening, body and closing. Opening: the reason or purpose of writing, mentioning the incoming letter, outgoing letter, contract, L/C or relevant goods; sometimes contents of incoming letter will be mentioned also, for example, we have received your letter of July 3, asking us to give you a firm offer”.Body: details of requirement, views, such as various terms and conditions, wishes to establish business relations;Closing: expectation or hope, such as wishes to receive the reply.The contents will differ with the different focus of each step of business. For example, in enquiry letter, the main points will be:Opening: reason of writing-receipt of catalogue and pricelist and interest in some itemBody: details of requirements-enquiryClosing: expectation for early offer5. Requirements (要求)Usually we use “3 C” to indicate the requirements for business letter writing, i.e. clearness (清晰)，courtesy(礼貌)，conciseness(简单). The meaning in the letter shall be correct, clear and has no grammatical mistakes; the language shall be polite, reply shall be in time; and the expressions shall be short, c