In The News

Why China Should Not Revalue

Francis Scotland October 2, 2003
China should continue to ignore US calls to revalue its currency. At present, the Chinese currency renminbi or yuan is pegged to the dollar at a rate of 8.4 to 1, a rate which many say makes the Chinese currency significantly undervalued. Nonetheless, the author argues that the Chinese currency peg allows the hyper-stimulative US monetary policy to be exported to the rest of the world economy...

A Very Dangerous Game

Martin Wolf September 30, 2003
Overspending in America to stimulate its economy has pushed the US fiscal deficit way out of balance – up to about six percent of US GDP. To service this debt, the US government has sold US$870 billion in Treasury bonds to foreign governments since 1999, creating a significant current account deficit. Martin Wolf argues that the US has mortgaged its economy by selling overpriced treasury bonds to...

U.S. Business Leaders Demand Won's Rise, Screen Quota Cut

Kim Sung-mi September 25, 2003
Several major obstacles to a bilateral trade agreement between South Korea and the United States were challenged during a meeting this week in Washington. US and Korean business leaders called on Korea to grant greater access to foreign films by lowering its quota of domestic films from 40% to 20%, an issue which some called the "principal obstacle" to a bilateral trade deal....

China May Widen Yuan Trading Band Next Year, Report Says

September 25, 2003
Economists speculate that China will revalue the yuan by the time the Olympic torch is lit for the 2008 games. Under growing pressure from US business interests and other trade partners, China is likely to revalue its currency by making significant changes next year and possibly even floating the currency as early as 2008. "China wants to be a respectable global player," one senior...

Can Rich Countries Stem the Outflow of Jobs?

Eddie Lee September 23, 2003
Last month, the United States lost 93,000 jobs, many of them in the service sector. This commentary in Singapore's Straits Times attributes this job loss to outsourcing by developed world companies. In an effort to cut costs, many companies are hiring workers in developing countries since they are willing to work for far less than their counterparts in the US and Singapore. As the...

China Protectionism Equals Votes

Christian Bourge September 15, 2003
US Treasury Secretary John Snow's failure to convince China to float its currency has been met with dismay by the Bush administration. As American unemployment grows in the manufacturing-heavy swing states like Pennsylvania and Michigan, Bush is looking to place blame elsewhere before he has to compete in the 2004 presidential election. China seemed like a good target – the US has a...

Why China Should Not Revalue Its Currency

Linda Lim September 12, 2003
Many Americans are searching for someone to blame for their currently struggling economy. Higher unemployment, a drop in the value of the dollar, and low consumer confidence have made the booming 1990s a distant dream. Some US industries have reacted to the economic slowdown by accusing a top exporter, China, of purposefully undervaluing the yuan. Demands to decouple the yuan from the dollar...