Roll over Vladimir, tell Mao Zedong the news: The Big Leagues of Capitalism want to call China up to the Show. It certainly makes sense; it's just a whip-lash to actually see in print, in Bloomberg.com, no less. Also, can anyone answer a puzzlement I'm afflicted with: does the United States have a "China Policy" that isn't as unpredictable as a squall in the Gulf of Mexico? Is it any wonder that Beijing is more than a little skeptical at just about everything that comes out of Washington?
April 24 (Bloomberg) -- China's emerging presence in the world economy means it should be allowed to play a bigger role in meetings of the Group of Seven industrial nations, a U.S. Treasury official said.
The official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity after G-7 finance ministers and central bankers met in Washington, said the G-7 should embrace Chinese leaders more and find ways of strengthening the dialogue between them.
"China is clearly playing a larger role in the global economy,'' Treasury Secretary John Snow said in a separate briefing. "Its continued progress is important to us and to others in the G-7.''
The U.S., the world's largest industrial economy, wants to broaden ties with China, the largest developing nation, as the Chinese economy outperforms Japan's. The U.S. official declined to say whether China should be added to the G-7, saying that was an invite one country couldn't extend alone.
