The Obama administration was only days old when the argument over whether China’s currency is deliberately undervalued – a huge bone of contention in US-China relations for years – returned to the headlines.
In written answers to questions from senators at his confirmation hearing, Tim Geithner, the treasury secretary, said: “President Obama – backed by the conclusions of a broad range of economists – believes that China is manipulating its currency.” Mr Obama would “use aggressively all the diplomatic avenues open to him to seek change in China’s currency practices”, he added.
