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Where Will The Blame Be Laid?

From Steve Roach's column today:

The Europeans and Japanese believe they have suffered enough and are pointing the finger at others — mainly China — to pick up the slack. US politicians are also sympathetic to this line of reasoning. Consequently, the role that China plays in venting global imbalances is also likely to be a key issue in the year ahead. For what it’s worth, I think this debate overlooks a critical consideration: Europe and Japan are wealthy countries that have dragged their feet endlessly on reforms, whereas China is still a very poor country that has been aggressive in embracing reforms. Why should China be called on to compensate for adjustments that Europe and Japan are unwilling to undertake?

Indeed, why should they? I can only hope that the forces of the market will help all of us trade freely without fighting, but I fear the U.S. is picking a trade fight with China. Neither China nor Europe nor Japan are to blame for the ongoing and upcoming price to be paid by the U.S. economy. We've done that to ourselves, but someone must be blamed, and it will be China.


Posted by nicole at December 19, 2003 11:33 PM
Comments

Hi Nicole, I was just wondering if you could tell me where you got your movable type template? If it is a template. I like your layout, but i can't seem to find any templates on my own.

Posted by tony at December 21, 2003 02:35 AM


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