American Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson appointed Alan Holmer as Special Envoy to China, state media reported. Holmer, who once was Deputy US Trade Representative under President Ronald Reagan, is expected to represent the US at the second meeting of the Strategic Economic Dialogue in Washington, DC, in May. Paulson said Holmer's experience should allow him to successfully lead efforts to help the Chinese government move toward a balanced, growing economy that is not reliant on large external surpluses. The US deficit with China exploded to a new high of US$232.5 billion in 2006 according to US estimates and $144.3 billion according to China's figures.