China reports record high trade surplus

[OhioChick]

BEIJING - China on Monday reported its trade surplus hit a new record high for a fourth straight month in August, adding to pressure for a stronger currency as U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson prepared to visit Beijing next week.

The August surplus climbed to $18.8 billion, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, citing data from the Chinese customs agency. That was well above the old record of $14.6 billion set in July.

China's growing trade gap has fueled demands by Washington and other trading partners for Beijing to raise the value of its currency, the yuan. That would make Chinese goods more expensive and might restrain surging exports.

Paulson hasn't said whether he will press Chinese officials to ease currency controls when he makes his first visit to Beijing as Treasury secretary since assuming the job in July. But the yuan has been a key issue for other Treasury envoys, and experts expect Paulson to raise it as well.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060911/ap_on_bi_ge/china_trade_surplus

[FloridaPat]

1. It's so nice of us Americans to support China like we have been.

Just visit any retail store - Walmart, K-Mart, Pennys, Sears. 99% of everything in the store is made overseas and most of it is from China. Why are we so stupid in this country?

[Waya]

2. I think it's more poverty these days......

....chinese imports are affordable...American made stuff is more expensive.....with the wages we're getting since BushCo has been at the wheel......cheap shit is all I can afford.....

[FloridaPat]

5. A lot of the few things I buy American are so crappy, they hardly last

a month. We're between a rock and a hard place on a lot of this stuff. Time to learn new hobbies: how to fix a car, how to make clothes. How to raise sheep and goats to make wool to make thread to make material to make our own clothes. How to makes shoes.

You get the picture.

[Octafish]

3. Thank Prescott Bush Jr.

George Herbert Walker Bush's bro was head of U.S. China Chamber of Commerce.

It's a crime family.

[TheCowsCameHome]

4. Just who is buying their stuff, anyway?

Oh yeah, we are.