Let's all try to look surprised...

Let's all try to look surprised about the U.S.'s decision to impose quotas on the growth of certain textile imports from China.

All the obvious comments apply. No, this doesn't make any economic sense at all. Yes, the Bush administration is playing the "yellow peril" card for 2004. Yes, this might get uglier in the future, although, and five years ago I would have laughed at the idea, maybe we can count on the Chinese government having a tad more self-preservation and common sense than the American. So, with luck, we'll not get all caught in another trade war (first the EU, then China... who's next, Japan?). No, neither the WTO nor the IMF are amused. Yes, the dollar did go south on these news. No, this doesn't look good for the Miami talks in a couple of days either.

And, yes, this is a headache-inducing piece of news.