Committee chairman Levin said the decision was about American jobs A US Congress committee has approved a bill that would place retaliatory trade sanctions on China.
It means the House of Representatives – the lower chamber of Congress – will vote on the bill next week.
The bill would allow the US to impose import duties on countries who have fundamentally undervalued currencies.
To become law, the bill would also need support in the Senate, which is less certain ahead of mid-term Congressional elections due in November.
The US accuses China of holding down the value of its currency, the yuan, in order to give its exports an unfair price advantage.
“China’s persistent manipulation is a major distortion in the international marketplace,” said Sander Levin, chairman of the House Ways and Means committee.
“[The yuan] has a major impact on American workers and therefore American jobs. That’s what this is really all about.”
The move comes a day after US President Barack Obama spent most of a two-hour meeting with Chinese premier Wen Jiabao in New York pressing for a stronger yuan.
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