BRICS: Not bound by ‘unilateral’ sanctions on Iran

"India and China insist that US sanctions on Iran's oil industry should not apply to their trade ties with Tehran. All of the BRICS countries agree they are not bound by the "unilateral" sanctions against Iran.
­The statement comes as the trade ministers of the BRICS economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – meet ahead of a summit in India.
"I think that we all broadly agree with the proposal, the terminology that was made, that if there are UN Security Council sanctions then we are all bound by that, but if there are sanctions that are imposed by other countries unilaterally, they shouldn't have to apply to us," South Africa's Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies is cited by Reuters as saying..."

at http://rt.com/news/brics-iran-us-sanctions-684/

Brics’ move to unseat US dollar as trade currency

"South Africa will this week take some initial steps to unseat the US dollar as the preferred worldwide currency for trade and investment in emerging economies.

Thus, the nation is expected to become party to endorsing the Chinese currency, the renminbi, as the currency of trade in emerging markets.

This means getting a renminbi-denominated bank account, in addition to a dollar account, could be an advantage for African businesses that seek to do business in the emerging markets.

The move is set to challenge the supremacy of the US dollar..."

at http://www.citypress.co.za/Business/News/Brics-move-to-unseat-US-dollar-as-trade-currency-20120324

U.S., EU, Japan take on China at WTO over rare earths

"The United States, Europe and Japan have joined forces to challenge China's restrictions on exports of rare-earth metals, escalating a trade row over access to some of the most important raw materials used in advanced technologies..."

at http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/14/us-china-trade-eu-idUSBRE82D07Q20120314

Manipulating the yuan debate dangerous game

"Some members of the U.S. congress are playing a dangerous game by manipulating the Chinese yuan debate for domestic political gains.
These congressmen, prompted by a need to appease American workers frustrated by the loss of millions of jobs in the global financial crisis, and to woo constituencies in elections to be held later this year, are resorting to their old trick of blaming everything on China.
They claim China's foreign exchange policy is costing America jobs and threaten to impose tough trade sanctions against Chinese imports.
But they choose to ignore the fact that an appreciating yuan cannot rebalance Sino-U.S. trade or help create jobs for American workers. Both trade imbalance and high unemployment are deep-rooted economic problems that can only be addressed when the United States implements some painful yet necessary structural reforms.
These congressmen claim they are the white knights defending the interest of the American people, but in fact, they are nothing more than a bunch of baby-kissing politicians trying to swing voters by manipulating the yuan debate.
They only served to divert the public attention from the much more serious domestic economic problems, which are caused in part by their incompetence.
It is really dangerous that these irresponsible remarks, played up by some sensational U.S. media outlets, will inevitably mislead the American public, and poison the atmosphere of Sino-U.S. economic cooperation.
The fact is that China now serves as the third-largest export market for American goods and it will probably become the biggest one sooner than expected. A growing Chinese economy has brought substantial benefits to American workers.
When they are manipulating the yuan debate,these American politicians may make some short-term political gains, but they put the long-term Sino-U.S. bilateral relations in jeopardy."

at http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2010-06/13/c_13348628.htm