Economic issues at forefront as Hu visit draws near

Kevin G. Hall, Knight Ridder… Economic issues at forefront as Hu visit draws near

Kevin G. Hall, Knight Ridder Newspapers

WASHINGTON — As Chinese President Hu Jintao prepares to visit America next week, he knows he’ll face hostile fire on trade and the global economy.

Congress is threatening to impose import tariffs, the Treasury Department is considering branding China a currency manipulator and the U.S. trade representative just filed a complaint accusing China of distorting global trade in auto parts.

While the United States remains concerned about a range of political and security questions involving China, this year public attention is focused mostly on economic issues. Despite its growing wealth and the leverage that brings, China has a public-relations problem in its largest market, the United States.

Frank Vargo, the vice president of international affairs for the National Association of Manufacturers, is blunt: “I think they’ve blown it