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Does anyone else notice that lately nearly all the news and all the headlines are focused on Washington?
• China & the yuan; pressure builds ahead of the Apr 15 Treasury report that could label China a
currency manipulator – the House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing Mar 24 looking into
China and its yuan policy; in the Senate, a bipartisan group of lawmakers intend to reintroduce
legislation that would instruct the Obama administration to take action against China unless it allows its
currency to float freely (details of this legislation will be made public on Tues); more than 100 members
of Congress on Mon called on the White House to label China a currency manipulator; China on Tues
repeated that it would not respond to foreign pressure when it came to its currency and said its large
trade surplus vs. the US wasn’t a result of its currency – Reuters/FT
• On the crude front, Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al‐Naimi in on Reuters saying that current oil
prices around $80 a barrel were "in a happy situation."
Average Price Gasoline at pump for all grades – Department of Energy
The current average price for gasoline is $2.84. It is true this is a ‘happier situation’ than the summer of
2008 when the price was over $4…but not as happy as the long lost days of Gasoline in the low $1 range.
• Student lending ‐ Move on student loans could win healthcare votes, House Dems say ‐ The notion
of using the healthcare bill as a vehicle for the student lending measure has percolated among
Democrats on Capitol Hill for months but in recent days has seemed increasingly likely ‐ though
Democrats stressed that the plan is not yet a go. The Hill
• Jobs package clears hurdle in Senate ‐ By a bipartisan vote of 61 to 30, the Senate eliminated the
final procedural obstacle to approval later this week of the bill; Six Republicans joined 53 Democrats and
two independents in cutting off debate; 29 Republicans and one Democrat, Senator Ben Nelson of
Nebraska, opposed the move – NYT
• Dodd and the Volcker rules ‐ The Dodd bill calls for a study by a new Financial Stability Oversight
Council to figure out how best to implement the new Volcker regulations. According to a senior
administration official, Dodd decided to include the Volcker provisions in the measure only this past
weekend after it became clear that he would roll out the legislation w/o GOP support (w/o the need to
secure Republican support, Dodd instead went after securing Democrat support, which the Volcker rules
will help do). Politico