http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_us_china_currency;_ylt=AhYA99sJZJVRZIBPjsfub3qwhrZ_;_ylu=X3oDMTJ0NjM2N2RlBGFzc2V0Ay9zL2FwL3VzX3VzX2NoaW5hX2N1cnJlbmN5BGNjb2RlA3JkbmJlBGNwb3MDOQRwb3MDOQRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3JpZXMEc2xrA25ld3VzbGF3bWFrZQ--Chinese President Hu Jintao's high-profile visit to Washington this week comes as newly elected Republican lawmakers are itching to act against what they see as an undervalued Chinese currency that is costing American jobs.
But they could run into resistance from leaders of their own party. Congress may be less likely to pass legislation on the issue than it had been last year, when both chambers were under Democratic control. A bill to give U.S. companies a means of challenging what they view as an unfair export subsidy sailed through the House, but died in the Senate.
Three Democratic senators — Charles Schumer of New York, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania — plan to introduce legislation this week to address the currency issue.
If passed it would impose stiff new penalties on designated countries that misaligned currency in a way that unfairly harmed U.S. trade. Penalties would include tariffs on exports and a ban on any companies from those countries from receiving U.S. government contracts.