Peking University professor Michael Pettis, who has a brilliant blog called “China Financial Markets,” would disagree with both of your points. He would strongly reject the idea (as would, by the way, most China-based economists) that China has a “quick-reacting and iron-fisted government that can change economic regulations at the drop of a hat.” On the contrary one of the big problems Beijing faces is that factional infighting has created policy paralysis, in Pettis’ words, and even when policy is agreed to it is often nearly impossible for Beijing to enforce it in the provinces.

Second they cannot easily “toy with its money and exchange rate, making it incredibly difficult to exchange even small amounts of currency from the yuan to others.” They have got themselves caught in a monetary policy that they are desperate to control but cannot get out of, and it seems that speculative inflows this year were the highest ever recorded in history. They tried everything they could to stop it, but to no avail.

@Lance Atkinson. America is not ruining the world. You would be well served to at least try and understand complex issues.