US tariff bill scrapped

US Senators Charles Schumer and Lindsey Graham said on Thursday they would abandon legislation threatening China with a 27.5% punitive tariff if it failed to revalue its currency. Instead, they now favor of a new bill they plan to develop early next year, Reuters reported. The senators told reporters at a news conference with the Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley and Senator Max Baucus they had accomplished their goal of focusing more attention on China's strict exchange rate controls, which they believe gives Chinese companies an unfair trade advantage. Schumer credited the controversial bill for a rise of more than 4% in the value of the yuan since July 2005, but said it was time to change tactics. Grassley, whose committee has jurisdiction over trade, said the new bill would not be narrowly focused on China but look broadly at the issue of how the US should respond to countries that do not fairly value their currency.