Saturday, December 04, 2004

China funds US housing bubble

The New York Times > Business > World Business > Dollar's Fall Tests Nerve of Asia's Central Bankers
... officials at the State Administration of Foreign Exchange in Beijing have been seeking higher yields by plowing billions of dollars a month into bonds backed by mortgages on houses across the United States, according to bankers who help Beijing manage the money. By helping keep mortgage rates from rising, China has come to play an enormous and little-noticed role in sustaining the American housing boom.

So, is this an evil conspiracy to destroy the US economy? No. It's a desperate attempt to keep the US economy afloat. A recession in America is bad news, a recession in China is a potential worldwide catastrophe. An American recession might mean a Chinese recession.

I'd be more willing to invest if Bush were not our President.

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