THE STAKES ARE higher than ever before for a seat at the table for Asian economies exporting to the US. And each month they get higher still. The rules of the game require Asian countries collectively to finance the US to the tune of roughly $1 billion a day. In exchange, the US buys all the manufactured goods that Asia's factories can produce.
There are perhaps a dozen Asian players around the table, all paying the US to purchase the same basic goods. When the exporters sell the dollars they receive from the US, Asian governments eagerly buy them, selling their local currency in exchange. That keeps their exchange rates low and the US in the game so that the next hand can be dealt.
"The Asians are working their butts off to make Nike shoes for $10 which Nike sells for $50 in US malls," says Marc...
