China will keep the value of the yuan stable instead of floating it against the dollar, as the U.S. and Thailand have called for.
The statement of the decision by the People’s Bank of China, reported on Bangkokpost.com, came yesterday, a day after a Thai economist called for China to allow its currency to rise. The weak value of the yuan has contributed to a trade gap that has hurt export competitors, among them Thailand, which reported a trade deficit with China of nearly $1.7 billion in the first nine months of this year. Thailand complains that cheap Chinese goods have flooded its market and undercut its prices.
The U.S. trade deficit is expected to reach $229 billion in U.S. dollars for 2006, topping the $202-billion gap in 2005.
