Spanish/English Business Correspondence

Correspondecia de comercio Espanol/Ingles

Michael Gorman, Maria-Luisa Henson

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2005
• ISBN:
  9781134776337
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Languages & Linguistics
• Subtopic: Languages
• Index: Languages & Linguistics

Covering a wide range of situations, this is suitable for the business user or for students learning the language.

1
Enquiry about a product

4 January 199–

Augustin SA
Z.I. de I’Empereur
F-19200 Ussel
France

Dear Sir/Madam

RE: TOOTHPICK MAKING & PACKAGING MACHINE

We represent a major distributor of foodstuffs and other related materials in Kenya.

We have found your name in Kompass under the category of suppliers of toothpick-making machinery. Our present requirement is for a special toothpick-making and packaging machine. If you do produce such equipment or can supply it we would be pleased to receive your earliest quotation CIF Mombasa, prices for this machine and its equipment, together with a stated delivery time.

Please would you also quote for the installation of this machine in the Ususu factory in Mombasa.

We look forward to your earliest reply and remain

Yours faithfully
John Mason
Technical Director

1
Solicitando información sobre un producto

Hnos.¹ Godoy
Polígono² Nuevo, Unidad 45
Palencia,³ ESPAÑA.

4 de enero de 199–

Asunto: Máquina de fabricación y envasadora de palillos

Estimado/a Sr/Sra:⁴

Representamos a un importante distribuidor de comestibles y otras materias relacionadas con esta industria en Kenia.

Su nombre figuraba en Kompass bajo la denominación de abastecedores de maquinaria de fabricación de palillos. Necesitamos disponer de una máquina especial al objeto de fabricar y envasar palillos. Si usted⁵ es fabricante de dicha maquinaria, o la abastece, le agradeceríamos nos enviara⁶ lo antes posible presupuesto CIF⁷ Mombasa, precios de esta máquina y material complementario, junto con la fecha de entrega.

Asimismo, sírvase⁸ comunicarnos precio de instalación de la misma⁹ en nuestra fábrica de Ususu, en Mombasa.

En espera de una pronta contestación, le saludamos¹⁰ muy atentamente.

Gianni Mussini
Director Técnico

1 Abbreviation of Hermanos (‘brothers’).

2 Polígono: industrial/trading estate typical of economic development in Spain since the 1960s.

3 The Spanish town/city name is frequently preceded here by a five-digit code; the first two digits refer to its province.

4 Abbreviation for Señor/Señora (‘Mr’/‘Mrs’)—also Señorita (‘Ms’) abbreviated to Srta— is normal here. Estimado/a: the most simple, and increasingly popular, of several virtually equivalent ways of greeting the addressee.

5 Usted (abbreviated to Vd.): formal mode of ‘you’ singular form of address, used with third person verbs and pronouns. In Latin America usted is yet more widespread; its plural (ustedes) is used in Latin America for any ‘you’ plural; whilst in Spain vosotros (plural of tú: informal) is also used, informally. Tú and vosotros would not be used in commercial correspondence.

6 Conditional tense followed by imperfect subjunctive: a complex verb structure typical of Spanish commercial correspondence.

7 CIF: English abbreviation used in Spanish, whose equivalent is coste (‘cost’), seguro (‘insurance’), flete (‘freight’).

8 One of several ways to say ‘please’ formally.

9 La misma: ‘the aforementioned’, referring back to máquina.

10 Plural verb (‘we greet’) to refer to all infirm enquiring.

2
Enquiry about prices

28 February 199–

Bandani Detergenti SpA
Via A. Lamarmora 75
20093 COLOGNO MONZESE (MI)
Italy

Dear Sir/Madam

RE: QUOTATION RMS 34/16 JAN 199–/TOILET CLEANSER

On 16 January we received a quotation from your company for the supply of 4, 000 litres of industrial toilet cleanser and disinfectant. We were unable to justify ordering this at the time, because we had sufficient stocks from our previous order at the end of last year.

We would like to enquire now if the prices quoted at the time are still valid for this commodity.

If you are unequivocally able to confirm that this is the case, please take this letter as an order for a further 10,000 litres. If there has been any price increase, please be so kind as to fax this to us or phone the undersigned, so that we can proceed and agree a price in due course.

Yours faithfully
Dick DeZwart
Buyer

2
Solicitando precios

Bandani Detergenti s.p.a.
Via A.Lamarmora 75
20093 Cologno Monzese
Milano, ITALIA.

28.2.199–

Asunto: Presupuesto RMS 34/16 enero 199–/detergente limpieza sanitarios¹

Muy Sr/Sra nuestro/a:²

El pasado 16 de enero recibimos de su empresa un presupuesto para el suministro de 4.000³ litros de detergente y desinfectante industrial para la limpieza de sanitarios. Por entonces nos fue imposible aceptar su oferta ya que disponíamos de suficientes existencias restantes de nuestro pedido anterior, efectuado a finales del año pasado.

Ahora nos gustaría informarnos si los precios vigentes en aquellas fechas⁴ son todavía válidos para este producto.

Si usted puede confirmarnos, sin dejar lugar a dudas, que esto es así, sírvase considerar esta carta como un pedido de 10.000 litros más. Si ha habido subida de precios, tenga a bien enviarnos los precios por fax, o llame al abajo firmante por teléfono, y así poder proceder y llegar a un acuerdo sobre el precio en su debido momento.

Reciba⁵ atentos sa...