Friday, October 9, 2009

Asian Exporters Turf Battles

Another reason to be dubious of the 'Asian Century'. Nearly all the countries (excepting India) are currently export dependent, in that they produce far more then they consume. This can easily lead to currency wars and competitive devaluations, which is largely what yesterday's dollar move was about.

As the Financial Times reported :

"Asian central banks intervened heavily in the currency markets on Thursday to stem the rise of their currencies against the US dollar amid fears that their exports could be losing ground to China, reports the FT."

This reveals an underlying tension in Asia - and that is, China is not especially popular, nor is the Chinese merchant class. It's why many countries in the region agree with the counterweight of an American economic and military presence. It's also a large reason why U.S. / India nuclear pact was signed.

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1 "Asia steps in to support dollar" - FT/Alphaville
1 "Asian banks move to prop up the dollar" - UK Times
3 "The U.S.-India Nuclear Deal" - Council on Foreign Relations
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Previous Posts: 4"Export Oriented Countries Still Very Vulnerable"

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