More headlines this morning on the dollar strategy of the Obama administration. First, the main headline in the Wall Street Journal contains the blast: “U. S. Stands By as Dollar Falls.” (See http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125498941145272887.html#mod=todays_us_page_one.) Then the lead editorial follows up with “The Dollar Adrift.” (See http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703746604574461473511618150.html.)
We also learn that the administration was worried enough about this type of thinking to send out Chairman Bernanke and presidential advisor Larry Summers to indicate how serious the Obama Administration is in maintaining a strong dollar.
Again the phrase “Watch the hips and not the lips” comes to mind. There is very little the administration can do right now to introduce fiscal responsibility into what they are proposing. The die has already been cast and no one sees a quick reversal of the administration’s mindset.
And, this is the problem. Time-after-time in the last half of the 20th century countries got themselves into predicaments like the one being faced by the United States. Uncontrolled government budgets with the promise of growing amounts of debt outstanding. Connected with this fiscal irresponsibility was the concern that central banks were really not independent of the national government. This is a situation not unlike that currently in place in the United States.
There were a number of books that came out in the late 1980s and early 1990s that basically asked the question: “Is national economic policy in the hands of unknown bankers and financial interests around the world?” The general scenario depicted was that of a national government that proposed large and growing budget deficits that seemed unsustainable without the support of a captive central bank that would monetize the debt as pressure on local interest rates grew. The reaction of these “unknown bankers and financial interests” was to sell the currency of that nation and force the national government to reverse direction and introduce fiscally responsible budgets.
The primary example of such a historical event was that which occurred during the presidency of François Mitterrand in France. The French Franc came under such pressure that Mitterrand backed off his budget proposals and became fiscally quite conservative and supported the independence of the French central bank.
The issue here is not so much the size of the deficits, although that can be important, or the ratio of the deficits to GDP, or the ratio of government debt to GDP. The question relates to whether or not the government is acting in a fiscally responsible way and will it continue to do so in the future. The side question to this is the independence of the central bank.
Absolute numbers are fine, but it is the direction those numbers are going that are the crucial concern.
The facts to me are as follows: since the 1960s, the United States government has erred on the side of fiscal ease in terms of the budgeting process. This has not been a Republican or a Democratic fault. The leadership in both parties has contributed to the stance of fiscal leniency that has existed within the federal government over this time period.
During this time the value of the dollar has trended downward, with one or two side-trips.
During the Bush (43) administration fiscal irresponsibility got way out-of-hand. The fiscal irresponsibility was supported by monetary irresponsibility. Thus, we get to the current situation.
Nothing has changed!
Financial markets are seeing the same behavior in the current administration that they observed in the previous administration. O’Neill, Snow, Paulson, and Geithner are all of one package. Greenspan and Bernanke are linked at the hip. And, the words coming out of the mouths of our leaders seem to be “pre-recorded.”
I have been trying to call attention to this issue for four or five years now. Very little attention has been paid to the issue even though at one time in the Bush (43) administration the value of the dollar had declined by about 40%.
The problem is that there are no good solutions to the situation when you let it go for that long. The obvious picture is that of a binge drinker that has been an alcoholic for a lengthy period of time. More and more people are going to get hurt and this will just add to the many that are feeling pain at the present time. But, that is what happens when people lose their discipline and become addicted.
The event we see over and over again in economics is that ultimately the system has to correct, either on its own or with the help of those that are a part of the system. And, the correction takes place sooner, or, later, but it eventually takes place. Unfortunately along the way, as with alcoholics, some of the best attempts of “friends” to cure the patient only end up exacerbating the situation.
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5 comments:
The decline in the exchange value of the dollar is the result of our protracted trade deficit, not the federal deficit, although there is a connection.
Unless we are willing to make those fundamental reforms requisite to successfully competing in international markets, the continued decline of the dollar will finally force a payments balance on us.
Under these circumstances, we can expect long term deterioration in the standard of living of the vast majority of the people in this country.
The U.S. must sell higher quality, lower cost, goods & services. It must also compete in the international trading markets, with unfair trade practices, e.g., currency pegs.
As an example: The U.S. was forced off of the gold standard for soley one reason, i.e., the volume of foreign multilateral claims on the U.S. dollar. This figure was made up of entirely foreign military expenditures (e.g., Korean War, Vietnam War, our military bases abroad, etc.). The private sector ran surpluses in all international accounts during this period.
So, we need to curtail the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and close our military bases abroad, and bring our troops home.
But this is the tip of our problems. We need ample energy, critical commodities, and all ingredients required for the production of our goods. As such, the probability of reversing our trade deficit is nil.
We will eventually have capital controls because Americans will shipon off their investment capital and invest all of their funds abroad. It will also result in Americans escaping rising taxes and establishing their residence abroad.
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