Group Calls For Further Action On China Currency.

The China Currency Coalition plans Thursday to declare that China's currency remains undervalued by 40 percent or more against the dollar and is calling on the Bush administration and Congress to take a more aggressive stance against China's currency policy. Skip Hartquist, who is counsel to the labor, agricultural and manufacturing coalition, said China's revaluation of the yuan by 2 percent in July was insignificant and its policy continues to result in cheaper Chinese exports. "The bottom line is there's been virtually no improvement whatsoever," Hartquist said. "We encourage the United States to move ahead even more aggressively with this with China." Hartquist said his group is urging the administration to reconsider its decision not to take the issue to the World Trade Organization. The group also supports a proposal floated earlier this year by Reps. Timothy Ryan, D-Ohio, and Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., that would classify currency manipulation as a prohibited export subsidy, subjecting it to WTO actions. The group, which broke away from the manufacturers-led Fair Currency Alliance last year, is hosting an event Thursday with AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka, economists and manufacturers.