US removes China from currency manipulator list ahead of trade deal signing
US Treasury has removed China from its list of currency manipulator as Washington and Beijing are preparing to sing a large-scale trade deal.
The Treasury said in a statement that China agreed to publish relevant data on exchange rates and made an effort to refrain from "competitive devaluation" ahead of the agreement signing.
In its semi-annual report released on Monday, the Treasury said that while China “took concrete steps to devalue its currency,” Beijing still needs “to take the necessary steps to avoid a persistently weak currency.”
The report explicitly credits the tentative phase one trade agreement between the US and China, struck in December, for helping to bring about the reforms.
Intensive trade and currency negotiations between the United States and China over the last few months resulted in a Phase One agreement that requires structural reforms and other changes to China’s economic and trade regime in several key areas, including currency and foreign exchange issues
The report also notes an “extremely large and persistent trade surplus” Beijing enjoys with the US, which it said is “dwarfing all other trade imbalances” between the US and other countries.
The Treasury urged China to boost domestic demand and lessen its economy's reliance on export and investment, apparently, to reduce the trade gap.
https://www.rt.com/news/478171-us-removes-china-currency-manipulation/