NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Li Daokui, an adviser to the People's Bank of China, said Wednesday that the U.S. is "playing with fire" by even considering a brief technical default on its debt in order to force more spending cuts at home, Reuters news agency reported. Reuters said Li made the comments at a meeting in Beijing. "I think there is a risk that the U.S. debt default may happen. The result will be very serious and I really hope that they would stop playing with fire," Li said, according to the report.