>I suggest it is reasonable to suppose that a major factor propelling the US
>into its massive intervention to support the yen, was behind the scenes
>warnings from the Chinese that they are considering devaluing the renminbi.
>
>This may be the first time that the Chinese economy has become a factor in
>the management of global financial systems.
It wasn't at all behind the scenes - the Chinese were pretty open with their threats late last week and over the weekend. Today's papers are full of thumbsucking over this new Chinese role, which may be a sign that China is stepping into the political vaccuum left by Japan's shrinkage as a regional (much less a global) player.
By the way, there's an interesting article in the current New Left Review arguing that U.S. military strategy is now directed towards the containment of Russia and China, with "Iraq" and "North Korea" serving as respective stand-ins for the real targets in public documents.
Doug