US President George W Bush phoned President Hu Jintao to press for China to de-link its currency from the US dollar and begin the shift to a market-based, flexible exchange rate. US industry has long complained that the yuan is undervalued, giving Chinese an unfair pricing advantage over American goods, threatening jobs. Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, Bush's Democratic opponent in November's presidential election, has repeatedly made the same appeal. China has said it plans to de-link but has given no timetable.
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