China’s state media have criticized U.S. President Barack Obama’s remarks about Beijing’s currency policy, accusing the president of blaming China for his country’s economic problems.

The official Xinhua news agency said Monday Mr. Obama is using the issue to attract votes. Xinhua said forcing the yuan to appreciate more quickly would bankrupt Chinese companies without resolving the U.S. trade deficit with China.

Mr. Obama told the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Hawaii China has not done enough to allow its currency, the yuan, to reach a fair market level. He said Beijing needs to act more responsibly and address trade imbalances.

U.S. officials have long accused China of keeping its currency artificially low, a policy that helped send the U.S. trade deficit with China to more than $270 billion in 2010.

Last month, the U.S. Senate approved a bill to impose punitive taxes on Chinese imports if the yuan is not revalued.