U.S. Representative Sandy Levin
12th District of Michigan
| For Immediate Release November 28, 2005 |
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Statement by Congressman Sander Levin on Treasury Department’s Report Release on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies |
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(Washington D.C.)- Congressman Sander Levin (D-MI), a Senior Member of the House Ways and Means Committee, made the following statement in response to the Treasury Department's release of the Report to Congress on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies:
“The Bush Administration’s persistent failure to act on China’s currency manipulation has helped produce record Chinese trade surpluses and record American trade deficits. A rhetorical device like the special annex in today’s report seeking to hide behind complexities is no substitute for concrete plans of action. We must do better than letting our fiscal hole continue to grow deeper and deeper.
For American manufacturers, the impact of currency manipulation on their ability to compete on a fair playing field is clear. Experts estimate that because of Chinese policies, China’s currency is undervalued by between 15 and 40 percent. If China’s currency were undervalued by 40 percent, this means that a $1000 product made in China could be exported to the United States for only $600. At the same time, a $1000 product made in the United States would need to be sold for more than $1400 in China.”
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