INTERVIEW-UPDATE 2-Obama to raise currency issue with China

(Updates with more Obama comment)

By Caren Bohan and Alister Bull

WASHINGTON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Monday he plans to raise the issue of the yuan currency with Chinese officials when he meets with them in Beijing next week, a potentially disruptive topic for foreign exchange markets.

"Currency, along with a host of other issues, will come up, and I'm confident that both the United States and China can arrive at a broad set of policies that encourages trade that benefits both countries, that allows ongoing economic growth," Obama told Reuters in an interview.

U.S. manufacturers complain that Beijing artificially holds the value of the yuan down to make its exports cheaper, and American goods more expensive for Chinese consumers.

Economists say this has led to imbalances in the world economy by contributing to big trade deficits in the United States and trade surpluses in China. G20 leaders pledged at a summit in Pittsburgh in September to aim for policies to ease these imbalances.

"That broader conversation will be at the center of our conversations with the Chinese delegation," Obama said.

Obama has so far resisted domestic pressure to brand China as a currency manipulator, which could anger a crucial U.S. creditor, and when asked about this in the interview he parried the question.