China might want oil from the Middle East, but those in the Middle East – with so much wealth concentrated in so few hands – might be more interested in Gucci handbags than in China’s mass-produced goods. So China can have a trade deficit with the Middle East and a trade surplus with the US, but these bilateral balances indicate nothing about China’s overall contribution to global imbalances.
国际货币基金组织的任务是非常艰巨的。当然，基金组织的重点在于全球性不平衡而非双边贸易不平衡。在多边贸易体系中，双边贸易的大额逆差可以通过和其他国家的贸易顺差来弥补。中国也许想要中东的石油，但中东那些由少数人掌握巨大财富的国家，也许对古奇手袋更感兴趣而非中国大规模制造的商品。因此中国在与中东的贸易中呈现逆差，但与美国贸易则为顺差。但这种双边贸易平衡并不能体现中国对全球不平衡的总体影响。