Lawmakers ready trade bills as U.S., China talk

(Reuters) - With little to show after four years of U.S. pressure on China to revalue its yuan currency, lawmakers in both the House of Representatives and the Senate are crafting bills aimed at forcing the administration to take a stronger stand on the issue and giving it the tools to do that.




"I'm pretty sure there will be legislation. The only question is what it would look like," said Frank Vargo, vice president for international economic affairs at the National Association of Manufacturers.


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FACTBOX-The deadliest, costliest hurricanes

(Reuters) - NAME YEAR CATEGORY DAMAGE




1. Katrina 2005 3 $81 billion


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Markets on China vigil as G8 avoids FX, surprises

(Reuters) - The two-day meeting, which ended on Saturday, was
overshadowed by Friday's surprise move by China to widen the
yuan's trading band and raise interest rates ahead of key
U.S.-China talks on trade tensions next week.




U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson was absent from the
meeting in Potsdam and no minister attended from France -- where
President Nicolas Sarkozy had appointed a new cabinet only on
Friday -- making the meeting a low-key affair.


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Citgo's Rodriguez to Be Tranferred to Europe, Venezuelan Ambassador Says

(Bloomberg) -- Felix Rodriguez, chief executive
officer at Citgo Petroleum Corp., the U.S. refining business of
Venezuela's state-owned oil company, is being transferred to the
parent company's European operations.

Rodriguez will be replaced by Citgo Chairman Alejandro
Granado, said Bernardo Alvarez, Venezuela's ambassador to the
U.S. The change will take place in a few weeks, Alvarez said
today in an interview in Chicago.


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Kimmitt says housing sector stabilizing

(Reuters) - Kimmitt was sent to the G8 session as a stand-in for Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who stayed in Washington to prepare for economic discussions next week with a high-level delegation from China, which Paulson has made a priority.




"While the economy grew modestly in the first quarter, we are confident it will return toward trend over the year," Kimmitt said in a statement issued at the conclusion of the G8 meeting that began on Friday evening and wrapped up on Saturday afternoon.


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Copper up as China fears ease; gold rises

(Reuters) - Copper ended slightly higher on Friday after two days off losses, with technical support trumping worries that China's explosive demand for the industrial metal may ease.

Gold and silver also rose as stronger oil prices prompted investors to turn to the inflation hedge in precious metals.


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Canada's Flaherty says more yuan flexibility needed

(Reuters) - China's central bank announced on Friday it would widen the
trading band for the yuan currency to 0.5 percent from 0.3
percent. It also tightened its one-year lending rate and the
one-year deposit rate.




Flaherty also said the United States has consulted Ottawa and
other governments on the best choice to replace World Bank
President Paul Wolfowitz, who resigned late Thursday.


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