They circle each other warily in round seven...

The fighter in the stars-and-stripes trunks looks battered and bruised. But he's still ahead on points. And he retains a terrific right.

The fighter in the red trunks is moving faster, more confidently. He throws no knockout punches, instead preferring to poke and jab. He's boxing cautiously, hoping to win on points.

The two fighters dominate world attention. All other contestants are on the sidelines.

It's the USA vs. China for the heavyweight title. By comparison, Europe looks like a lightweight. And India isn't even in the running.

In the round dealing with the signing of the USA/Japanese defense pact, China landed a light hook in retaliation. Hong Kong was persuaded to refuse shore leave to the American carrier fleet.

In the round dealing with military relations, a Chinese admiral made an offer, "We should divide the Pacific Ocean in half. We keep our half and you keep your half." It was just a light jab that the American fighter easily parried.

In the economic round, the Chinese fighter pushed "worry" over American economic policy – but he was poking and clinching at the same time. He and his rich buddies had been badly hammered in earlier rounds by their investments in Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, Lehman Brothers and America's big banks. When he clinched, the Chinese fighter seemed torn between hanging on tighter and pushing away.

The Chinese fighter sneered at his opponent over the Tibet issue and blocked out the American on the Doha round of world trade talks, but the judges don't award points for blocking and sneering.

The Chinese fighter landed a light right by sending out five little boats to harass the US Navy ship Impeccable, which was spying on China's main submarine base. But the American fighter countered with a hard left hook by sending a missile destroyer into the area.

The American fighter was jarred by a hard right to the midsection as the Chinese fighter sank Coca-Cola's effort to acquire a big Chinese juice company.

The Chinese fighter won points as Secretary of State Clinton backed off her human rights soapbox on her last visit to China. But she garnered points by hooking the Chinese fighter into bailing out the American deficit by buying more Treasury bills.

As the Chinese fighter goes back to his stool, he is advised by two men. The liberal cautions him about angering his opponent.

But his leftist, conservative corner man urges a more aggressive fight while the American is still weak from his foundering economy:

"You must hit harder. You must threaten to build aircraft carriers. You must threaten to send aid to Southeast Asia, solidifying our control. And you must buy up American companies so we can capture their know-how. You must!" he urges his fighter.

Which advice will the Chinese fighter take? Will he continue to fight cautiously or will adopt a more aggressive stance?

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