Li Yushi, vice president of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, told Xinhua that theoretically, the devaluation of the US dollar would benefit China's exports because the Chinese yuan is partially pegged to the dollar.

In practice, he said, the devaluation of the dollar would harm the interests of the United States and the United States would not let it continue. Li predicted the dollar would be getting strong in a few months.

Li, who has studied China's foreign trade for years, said the world economic situation is the dominant factor for China's exports. He described the better-than-expected economic recovery in the United States and the European Union as the driving forces behind China's 14.1-percent growth in exports in the first half of this year.

"Although there still exist certain unpredictable factors in the world economy, I can say with certainty that China's exports will continue to grow in the latter half of the year," Li said.

(Xinhua News Agency July 17, 2002)