Conditional tense

[Pete Laubscher]

Headline:  'Seize banque auraient manipulé le Libor.'

Body: 'Le calcul du principal indicateur de la santé financière mondiale aurait été faussé entre 2006 et 2008.'  

Both in Le Figaro today.

?: Surely a translation of the headline something in the order of: "Sixteen banks should have manipulated Libor?" is odd? 

The body with  aurait  as  'should have'   is understandable:  "...should have to be...".

If so, ergo quaere:  Why not use the Pres Subjunctive? Thus "Sixteen banks may have manipulated Libor?"

 

[Neil Coffey]

No, in this case it's a journalistic use of the conditional. The interpretation is something like "are alleged to have", "are reported to have", "are said to have ... according to our sources" etc.

 

Incidentally, the subjunctive is impossible in this case. Remember, the subjunctive doesn't really mean "may/might" in the sense of indicating a possibility, it's really the equivalent of a "snapshot" of a situation in a subordinate clause (equivalent to the bracketed expressions in: "[that he might/should think that] is unbelievable", "[him thinking that] is unlikely", "[for him to think that] is unlikely").

[Pete Laubscher]

Superb.  I have to get this into me cranium.  'Journalistic use'.

 

Thnks a mil Neil!

 

And thnks too re subjective.