White House Expresses 'Concerns' on China Bill

The White House Wednesday expressed "concerns" about legislation meant to punish China for alleged currency manipulation, after complaints in Beijing that it amounted to scapegoating.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said that the administration was worried the bill could compromise U.S. international obligations, and officials would work with lawmakers to modify the bill if it advances further in Congress.

The U.S. Senate is considering the legislation, which would empower businesses and in some cases labor unions to trigger a Commerce Department investigation into alleged currency manipulation.

Lawmakers of both major U.S. parties charge that China keeps the Yuan unfairly low against the dollar, giving its goods as much as a 30 percent edge over comparable U.S. products.

Carney said that the White House shared the view that China's currency needed to appreciate to what Washington says is a fairer value and agreed American workers needed a "level playing field."

"It is also the case that aspects of this legislation do, however, raise concerns about consistency with our international obligations, and we are in the process of discussing those issues with members of Congress.

"If this legislation were to advance, those concerns should be addressed," he said, without going into detail on the White House concerns.

Chances of the bill moving forward in the House of Representatives appeared doubtful however after Republican House Speaker John Boehner came out against the bill on Tuesday.

"It's pretty dangerous to be moving legislation through the United States Congress forcing someone to deal with the value of their currency," Boehner said.

"This is well beyond what Congress ought to be doing, and while I've got concerns about how the Chinese have dealt with their currency, I'm not sure this is the way to fix it."

The U.S. business community also mostly opposes the measure, citing concerns about embroiling the United States in a trade war and about the impact of a rising yuan on the price of commodities and other inputs upon which US firms rely.

But U.S. politicians have come under pressure to take on China ahead of next year's presidential election, shaped by anger at stubbornly high U.S. unemployment, while backers of the bill say it would create millions of jobs.

On Tuesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said the proposed U.S. bill amounted to "protectionism", while China's central bank also expressed "regret" at the measure.

China's official Xinhua news agency went further, with a commentary on Wednesday in which it accused U.S. lawmakers of using the country as a "political scapegoat."