美國眾議院通過懲罰中國法案

The US House of Representatives passed legislation that would punish China for undervaluing its currency and harming the competitiveness of US manufacturers and exporters, in a move that could heighten trade tensions between the two countries.

China quickly attacked the legislation on Thursday as contrary to WTO rules and “a new move of the US’ rising trade protectionism.” In a statement distributed through state media, a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce said China “has never undervalued the yuan exchange rate to gain a competitive edge.”

Although the bill’s fate remains unclear, since it still needs to move through the Senate and be approved by Barack Obama, US president, its bipartisan passage in the House by a wide 348-79 margin reflects growing frustration with China’s economic policies.

“They cheat to steal our jobs,” said Mike Rogers, a Republican representative from Michigan, as debate opened in the House ahead of the vote later on Wednesday. “We can no longer stand by and let the Chinese government manipulate its currency.” Don Manzullo, also a Republican, from Illinois, said: “We want to stop Chinese imports coming in at predatory prices.”

The Obama administration, which has not taken a position on the legislation, has preferred to pursue a policy of engagement with China in an effort to persuade it to allow the renminbi to strengthen, and could see its negotiating position enhanced by mounting congressional pressure.

But critics have warned that the more aggressive measures in the legislation may not be effective in reducing the US’s trade deficit with China and a more confrontational stance may be counterproductive, since it could lead to retaliation.

The legislation would allow the US to use estimates of currency undervaluation to calculate countervailing duties on imports from China and other countries.

An amendment by Sander Levin, Democratic chairman of the ways and means committee, who shepherded the bill through the House, watered down the bill recently to make it more like to survive a challenge at the World Trade Organisation, helping it garner more support. Republicans had been concerned that the bill might be inconsistent with global trade rules.

This week, Chuck Schumer, the New York senator who has been leading congressional efforts to pass China currency legislation since 2005, vowed to push forward with a bill in the upper chamber during the “lame-duck” session between the November midterm elections and the seating of new members in January.

“This issue cannot wait for another year for a new Congress,” he said. “China’s currency manipulation would be unacceptable even in good times. At a time of almost 10 per cent unemployment, we simply will no longer stand for it,” added Mr Schumer.

Currency is only one of the trade disputes between China and the US. They have recently been sparring over poultry exports, with China this week upholding steep tariffs on US chicken imports, and the WTO ruling on Wednesday against the US in a fight over a ban on Chinese chicken that followed the outbreak of bird flu in Asia and has since been lifted.

The vote on China currency was one of the last items on the congressional agenda before the midterm elections.

Other issues, such as the expiry of more than $3,000bn of Bush-era tax cuts, proved too contentious for any bipartisan consensus to emerge.