The U.S.-CHINA trade gap.After China's Communist revolution A communist revolution is a proletarian revolution inspired by the ideas of Marxism that aims to replace capitalism with communism, typically with socialism (state-run means of production) as an intermediate stage. in 1949, the U.S. and China became bitter enemies. They fought on opposite sides during the 1950-1953 Korean War Korean War, conflict between Communist and non-Communist forces in Korea from June 25, 1950, to July 27, 1953. At the end of World War II, Korea was divided at the 38th parallel into Soviet (North Korean) and U.S. (South Korean) zones of occupation. , and for the next two decades relations between the two nations were nonexistent non·ex·is·tence n. 1. The condition of not existing. 2. Something that does not exist. non . Relations have improved significantly since the early 1970s, although American American, river, 30 mi (48 km) long, rising in N central Calif. in the Sierra Nevada and flowing SW into the Sacramento River at Sacramento. The discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill (see Sutter, John Augustus) along the river in 1848 led to the California gold rush of leaders continue to criticize crit·i·cize v. crit·i·cized, crit·i·ciz·ing, crit·i·ciz·es v.tr. 1. To find fault with: criticized the decision as unrealistic. See Usage Note at critique. the Chinese Chinese, subfamily of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages (see Sino-Tibetan languages), which is also sometimes grouped with the Tai, or Thai, languages in a Sinitic subfamily of the Sino-Tibetan language stock. government's poor human-rights record. As the graph shows, China, with its vast pool of low-wage workers, has become a vital source of inexpensive goods for the U.S., especially toys, clothing, furniture, and electronics. The "trade gap"--the difference between Chinese exports to the U.S. and U.S. exports to China--has been widening because of Americans' appetite for cheap goods and the low value of China's currency compared with the U.S. dollar. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] ANALYZE an·a·lyze v. 1. To examine methodically by separating into parts and studying their interrelations. 2. To separate a chemical substance into its constituent elements to determine their nature or proportions. 3. THE GRAPH 1. About how many billions of dollars worth of goods did the U.S. sell China in 2000? (a) $10B (b) $9B (c) $12B (d) $16B 2. The difference between the value of goods China sold the U.S. in 1996 and the value in 2005 is about (a) $202B (b) $192B (c) $182B (d) $172B 3. If the value of U.S. exports to China rose by 15 percent a year from 2006 through 2010, what would exports total in 2010? About (a) $84.5B (b) $91B (c) $74.5B (d) $72B 4. In 2005, China sold $19 billion worth of toys and games to the U.S. About how much did the rest of China's exports total in that year? (a) $200B (b) $210B (c) $225B (d) $230B 5. About how much did the value of China's exports to the U.S. rise between 2000 and 2003? (a) 58% (b) 52% (c) 42% (d) 39% 6. Canada Canada (kăn`ədə), independent nation (2001 pop. 30,007,094), 3,851,787 sq mi (9,976,128 sq km), N North America. Canada occupies all of North America N of the United States (and E of Alaska) except for Greenland and the French islands of , America's biggest trade partner, sold about $256 billion worth of goods to the U.S. in 2004. What is the approximate difference between Canada's exports to the U.S. in 2004 and China's exports to the U.S. that year? (a) $50B (b) $59B (c) $70B (d) $65B 7. Discussion: Should the U.S. consider China's poor human-rights record and low wages when negotiating trade deals with China? Why or why not? ANSWER KEY 1. [d] $16 billion 2. [b] $192 billion 3. [a] $84.5 billion 4. [c] $225 billion 5. [b] 52% 6. [b] $59 billion 7. Answers will vary. |
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