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US sets currency deadline for China By Andrew Balls in Washington Published: May 17 2005 19:31 | Last updated: May 17 2005 19:31 The US Treasury, in its twice-yearly report to Congress on exchange rates and trade, stopped short on Tuesday of accusing China of currency manipulation but made clear it expected revaluation within six months. The conclusions sparked an angry reaction from those legislators who have lost patience with the Treasury's gentle diplomacy on China's exchange rate. The report, however, marked a clear hardening by the administration. It said: “If current trends continue without substantial alteration, China's policies will...

May 18, 2005 Toughening Its Line, U.S. Warns China on Currency By EDMUND L. ANDREWS WASHINGTON, May 17 - The Bush administration warned China on Tuesday that its currency policies were distorting world trade, and it brandished the threat of retaliation against the country's exports if Chinese leaders did not change course in the next year. In language far harsher than it has used before, the Treasury Department declared that China's fixed exchange rate between its currency, the yuan, and the dollar posed a risk to its economy and the economies of much of the rest of the world. The...

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/30/business/worldbusiness/30trade.html     China Heads List of Problems for New Trade Official Associated PressPirated DVD's being confiscated in a shop in Xian, China. Rob Portman, the new trade representative, vowed during his confirmation hearings to be tough on China and vigorously enforce trade laws. By ELIZABETH BECKER Published: April 30, 2005 ASHINGTON, April 29 - Representative Rob Portman, Republican of Ohio, was sworn in as the new United States trade representative Friday after the Senate approved his nomination in the morning.Popular with Democrats as well as Republicans, Mr. Portman's nomination was held captive for several days by Senator Evan Bayh, Democrat...

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/6be39ecc-b4c9-11d9-8df4-00000e2511c8.htmlChina may speed up reform of currency regimeBy Geoff Dyer in Boao, HainanPublished: April 24 2005 15:03 | Last updated: April 24 2005 15:03 China could accelerate its plan to reform its controversial currency regime because of mounting international pressure, the head of the country’s central bank admitted at the weekend. Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People’s Bank of China, said that the government was still working on the “sequencing” of a potential policy change, but acknowledged that encouragement from abroad could result in a quicker decision. “If there is more pressure from outside, it may force us to speed...

Yen and Chinese forwards leap on US pressure By Steve Johnson in London Published: April 22 2005 11:56 | Last updated: April 22 2005 17:30 The yen and forward contracts based on the non-tradeable Chinese renminbi both jumped sharply on Friday amid mounting speculation that Beijing may be ready to ease its decade-long dollar peg. China has been under increasing pressure over its currency since last weekend’s meeting of the G7 group of leading nations. President George W. Bush led an international chorus for action, while political pressure is building for the US Treasury to name China as a currency...

China put on notice over its currency By Andrew Balls and Scheherazade Daneshkhu in Washington Published: April 17 2005 19:11 | Last updated: April 17 2005 19:11The Group of Seven leading industrialised countries this weekend put China on notice that it must shift to a more flexible currency regime, with finance ministers demanding it take action immediately.  The G7's communique repeated its call for "more flexibility in exchange rates" where it was lacking, to help promote more balanced global growth, and added a demand that "vigorous action is needed to address global imbalances". Officials said there was no discussion of...

US bill aims to shake China off the peg HONG KONG - If China does not ease controls on its currency within six months, it will face a 27.5% tariff on all exports to the US under legislation to be introduced in the Senate on Friday. According to Wes Hickman, a spokesman for Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Caroline Republican who is sponsoring the bill, along with Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat, the bill, if approved, will require China to "abide by international trade agreements and stop manipulating the value of the yuan". Reacting to the news, Chinese...

Bush urges China to adopt market-based currency rate (Kyodo) _ President George W. Bush urged China on Wednesday to adopt a market-based currency rate and vowed to press major trading partners to open their markets as part of his efforts to reduce the huge U.S. trade deficit. "In terms of the trade deficit, it is important for us to make sure that countries treat their currencies in market fashion," Bush said in outlining his policy agenda for the second term at a press conference. "I've been working with China, in specific, on that issue." The Bush administration apparently wants China...

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Dogs with paralyzed hind legs regained the ability to walk after getting a shot of a chemical cousin of antifreeze that helped repair nerve cells in their damaged spinal cords, scientists reported. Purdue University researchers who led the project hope the approach can soon be tried in people, but caution that there are significant differences between human and canine spinal cords. The treatment only worked on dogs given the injections within about three days of their injury. Some dogs not given the injections eventually walked again, but those getting the new treatment had a dramatically higher recovery...

AG apologizes for drunken driving arrest, pleads guilty (Published Thursday, February 26, 2004 09:15:27 AM CST; updated Thursday, February 26, 2004 11:56:25 AM CST) By Jenny Price/Associated Press MADISON, Wis. -- Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager apologized to Wisconsin citizens Thursday for her drunken driving arrest, pledging to learn from her mistake. Lautenschlager, the state's top law enforcement official, read a statement to reporters and television cameras in the Department of Justice building near the Capitol. She said she cannot take back what happened Monday night, but she will learn from it. "The challenge of life is learning from one's mistakes,"...