BOCA RATON, FLA. Dollar's plummet revives hope for American manufacturers

The dollar will be discussed by U.S. officials and America's economic allies.
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) -- The Bush administration, hoping to reverse the loss of 2.8 million U.S. manufacturing jobs since mid-2000, is resisting pressure from its European allies to step in and halt a steep slide in the value of the U.S. dollar.
While the greenback's drop to record lows against the euro, the common currency of 12 European countries, is causing economic heartburn among European executives faced with increased competition from now cheaper-priced American goods, it is bringing hope of an export revival to beleaguered American manufacturers.
The sagging dollar and America's soaring trade and budget deficits were expected to be top discussion topics as U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow and Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan serve as hosts for a two-day meeting of America's major economic allies at an exclusive Florida resort.
The top finance officials of the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Canada -- the so-called Group of Seven countries who meet four times a year to assess the global economy -- were also scheduled to hear firsthand reports from their counterparts in Iraq and Afghanistan on efforts to revive those two war-torn economies.