US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's current visit comes at a time Chinese goods' safety, the yuan's exchange rate and China's impact on global climate change are becoming hot topics in the United States.

The US Senate Finance Committee passed a bill last week apparently targeting the Chinese currency's exchange rate. Newsweek and Business Week magazines as well CNN have reported extensively on issues concerning the safety of China-made commodities. It seems to this writer that Chinese-US economic and trade ties are at a crossroads.

On the shoulders of Paulson, a sponsor of the China-US strategic economic dialogue and also a senior US official who "knows China well", naturally rests the responsibility to stabilize bilateral economic relations. His current China visit, therefore, takes on added significance.