WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama accused China on Thursday of "gaming" international trade by keeping its currency weak, but was cautious about a bill before the U.S. Senate aimed at pressing Beijing to revalue the yuan.
Obama stopped short of explicitly backing legislation that calls for U.S. tariffs on imports from countries with deliberately undervalued currencies, and he restated concerns that any measure must comply with global trade rules.
Still, in his toughest language on China to date, the president echoed sponsors of the bill, which is heading toward a final Senate vote that could come later on Thursday. The measure, which has drawn warnings from Beijing that it could trigger a trade war, is widely expected to pass.
"China has been very aggressive in gaming the trading system to its advantage and to the disadvantage of other countries, particularly the United States," Obama told a news conference focused on his bid to revive a weak U.S. economy.
"Currency manipulation is one example of it," he said.
Obama, who faces a tough bid for re-election next year, did not say whether he would sign or veto the legislation if it reached his desk. Both the Senate and the House would have to approve the measure first.
"My main concern ... is whatever tools we put in place, let's make sure that these are tools that can actually work, that they're consistent with our international treaties and obligations," Obama said.
"I don't want a situation where we're just passing laws that are symbolic knowing that they're probably not going to be upheld by the World Trade Organization," he said.
The authors of the bipartisan Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act insist the bill complies with WTO rules.
BOEHNER CALLS BILL "WRONG" AND "DANGEROUS"
Many economists say China holds down the value of its yuan currency to give its exporters an edge in global markets. China says it is committed to gradual currency reform and notes that the yuan has risen 30 percent against the dollar since 2005.
The Senate voted 62-38 on Thursday to curtail debate and send the bill toward a final vote in that chamber.
Supporters say that decision, which required a super-majority of 60, virtually guarantees Senate approval, but the bill faces stronger opposition in the House of Representatives and may never be brought to a vote.
"For the Congress of the United States to pass legislation to force the Chinese to do what is arguably very difficult to do I think is wrong, it's dangerous," House Speaker John Boehner said on Thursday.
"You could start a trade war," he warned.
Boehner has the power to block the bill in his chamber, even though backers of the legislation say it has 225 House co-sponsors, including 61 Republicans -- enough for passage if it came to a vote.
Top House Democrats lost no time in stepping up pressure on Boehner.
"Now is the time for the House Republican leadership to stand with American workers by allowing the House to pass the bipartisan China currency bill, and put more Americans back to work," House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.
Obama touted his administration's record on pursuing trade cases before the World Trade Organization with the Chinese and others as "more aggressive than any in recent years." But he also noted he had taken great pains to stabilize ties with China that have been dogged by disputes over trade, human rights and U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.
VOTES VS. DIPLOMACY DILEMMA
If the House were to pass the bill, Obama would face a dilemma. Many Americans blame China's $260 billion trade surplus as one reason the U.S. unemployment rate is stuck above 9 percent.
The bill could hit Obama's desk just weeks before he hosts Chinese President Hu Jintao at a regional economic forum in Hawaii and meets Hu again at an Asian summit in Indonesia.
But vetoing the bill ahead of those November summits will not play well in industrial heartland states like Ohio and Michigan, which Obama likely needs to win a second term. A leading Republican candidate, Mitt Romney, has vowed to crack down on China over currency.
"I think Obama would prefer not to take a position, but if he wants to be consistent with his past policies and statements, he will sign the bill," said Scott Paul, executive director of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, a bill supporter.
"I don't think Obama wants to be outflanked on this," he said.
Obama said he believed "a win-win trading relationship with China" was possible.
But he said competing with the world's second-biggest economy requires Washington to "make sure that we're aggressive in looking out for the interests of American workers and American businesses and that everybody is playing by the same rules and that we're not getting cheated in the process."
Underscoring that stance, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk on Thursday accused China of flouting WTO rules by failing to notify the world trade body of nearly 200 Chinese government subsidy programs.
"The situation was simply intolerable," Kirk said in a statement, which also scolded India for being delinquent with the subsidy reports.
(Additional reporting by Jason Lange, Andy Sullivan and Donna Smith; Writing by Paul Eckert; Editing by Philip Barbara
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