Obama vows tougher stance on China trade

US President Barack Obama raised the topic of renminbi appreciation in a meeting with Democratic Party senators, vowing a tougher stance on trade issues with China, the New York Times reported. Obama said the US must "make sure our goods are not artificially inflated in price and [China’s] goods are not artificially deflated in price; that puts us at a huge competitive disadvantage." The Obama administration is said to be considering placing China on a US Treasury Department list designating currency manipulators, but the president said existing trade agreements with China would not be revoked. Tensions between the US and China have increased in recent weeks over Obama’s upcoming meeting with the Dalai Lama, US arms sales to Taiwan and criticism of China’s internet censorship.