胡主席取代奥巴马登福布斯榜首

After taking in his words, a shellacking at the mid-term elections, President Obama has now lost his ranking as the world's most powerful person at least according to the influential "Forbes" magazine. He's been usurped by Chinese President Hu Jintao, acoording to the magazine's publisher billionaire Steve Forbes.

Hu exercises near dictatorial control over the world's largest population. He can divert rivers. He can build cities. He can jail dissidents. He can censor the Internet. As for President Obama, Forbes says this is quite a comedown for the man who last year ranked at No.1 after losing control of the House of Representatives to the Republicans. Forbes says Obama will struggle to implement his agenda. Now Hu's elevation comes at a very sensitive time in relations between China and the United States. A lot of concern about the trading imbalance and the fact that China holds $1.5 trillion in US currency reserves. For Hu, he has his own issues. Here in Chongqing, considered the world's largest city with a great population of more than 30 million people. Despite double-digit growth for some years, the average income is still only $3500 a year. Of course there is this growing gap between rich and poor in China. Forbes says though that Obama can take some solace from the fact that he is still the leader of the world's biggest economy and the world's deadliest military. Hu Jintao not only tops Obama but also Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and the Pope.

Stan Grant, cnn, Chongqing, China