After the October Economic Conference it was pretty clear that the monetary alarmists, who worry that Chinese monetary policy has forced excessive investment and the threat of rising inflation, had gained the upper hand over the pro-growth members of the government, who were determined to maintain employment growth and more willing to accept the risk of overheating. Premier Wen Jiabao, who is responsible for China’s economic and monetary policy, finally seemed convinced that China needed to address the rising imbalances caused by excessively loose monetary conditions.