Dartmouth University economist Andrew Samwick has a good post on the dollar on his blog.
In almost all cases, the sky is not falling. Prices adjust so that it hangs lower and grayer.
Expect the dollar to decline until the U.S. current account imbalances shrink substantially. Expect some of this decline to happen as major exporting countries become less willing to organize themselves around holding dollars in exchange for their goods. Expect these countries to diversify their new investments and some of their existing ones, but not to dump their dollar holdings. No other country’s short-term economic interests are served by devaluing its own asset holdings, and no exporting country’s long-term economic interests are served by inviting a nationalistic, political response from the U.S.
I think this is the right approach to take on the dollar’s current turmoil.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.