Who Owns the USA? Perhaps China?

For my readers who are United States of America citizens, you need to read this interview (page 1 | page 2) conducted by the Financial Times with the Chinese Prime Minister, Wen Jiabao. Our government is running the printing presses non stop to print money to cover our increased spending. Should China ever insist on repayment of all the US Treasuries they own, it would make America's present economic difficulties seem trivial.

Although this issue should be important to everyone, given my involvement in building schools in rural China, it hits home.

Comments

[Joe R.]

so the USA is in debt within itself? And China owns only 7% of the US's debt in bonds?

[MPO]

"Should China ever insist on repayment of all the US Treasuries they own, it would make America's present economic difficulties seem trivial."

Um, this is not how it works. You buy treasuries, you own that treasury. If you purchase from the government, you cannot redeem the treasury early. There is no feature by which China can "demand payment." China may have the option to sell its bonds early on the market, but doing so would create a massive loss for the Chinese, not only through the direct loss of value on their bonds but through the tremendous harm inflicted on their own economy.

By the way, if you define who "owns" America based on how much of the debt a nation owns, then America is most assuredly not Chinese. The United States owns roughly 70% of the debt. China owns less than 7%.

[Stephen Downes]

China has read Saul Alinsky & has deftly sidestepped a confrontation by using the U.S.'s own system (and weakness) to gain advantage.

[Ron]

China should be worried about their dangerous over investment in US Treasury obligations. Washington ’s long-term choice is either repudiation or monetization. For monetization to be effective, the depreciation in the dollar would have to be substantial and this in turn would dramatically raise prices of imports for American consumers which would mean a tremendous drop in foreign imports. Debt monetization would cause more disruption to exporting nations than selective repudiation of Treasury debt.

Washington has bailed out the banks, Wall Street & their Washington special interests and much of the cost is added to the national debt to by paid by this and future generations while real estate and investments continue to fall. Find out what a growing repudiate the debt movement could mean for treasury bonds, the dollar, gold and the stock market.

The Campaign to Cancel the Washington National Debt By 12/22/2013 Constitutional Amendment is starting now in the U.S. See: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=67594690498&ref=ts
Thanks,
Ron