Neither a borrower nor a lender be,

Polonius:    Neither a borrower nor a lender be,
            For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
            And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.

A change in the Dollar : Renminbi exchange rate alters the value of Bonds issued and sold by the Americans to fund their Current Account Deficit. But Stephen King’s excellent article in this morning’s Independent, focuses on the tension between the United States and China over exchange rates. 

US policy makers would prefer to spin this as a Renminbi revaluation, rather than a devaluation of the greenback.. If the Dollar falls, and the Renminbi rises, “Chinese holdings of US Treasuries (Bills) would be worth less.” 

Chinese reluctance to fund post party binge

Given that there are forthcoming Mid Term Elections in the USA, it is a temptation for a US President to promote a policy which avoids US domestic deflation, at the expense of overseas creditors.

It highlights tension between Chinese investors, who would notice that their wealth in the form of US bonds falls as the dollar declines, and the US government. The US sees devaluation as a means to kick start a sluggish economy.

Asian bond holders may also wonder if Western Governments are really willing to tackle their deficits. King observes that during the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997, the IMF advised on retrenchment, and this may come back to haunt the West particularly if there was a bond strike.

As he grimly observes “...the US doesn’t seem to think it should abide by the same rules. Far better to use the exchange rate to pass the burden on to someone else than to swallow the bitter pill of austerity. No wonder the Chinese are not willing to play ball.”

Covnersely, Stephanie Flanders of the BBC examines policy tensions over exchange rates here.. Her focal point rests on tensions over trade, and economic growth, as the interests of net exporting nations are dissimilar to those of net importers.

Unit 2 Macro: Evaluation on Supply-Side Policies [21 May 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: The Current Account of the Balance of Payments [20 May 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: UK Trade in Services [20 May 2012]
Grexit - Andrew Balls on Greece and the Euro [16 May 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Revision Notes on Supply-side Policies [10 May 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Model answer for revision data question [9 May 2012]
F585: Recent Articles of Relevance [6 May 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Trade and Balance of Payments Glossary [5 May 2012]
Macro Revision - Key Statistics on the UK Economy [4 May 2012]
Macro Revision: Putting Things in Context [29 Apr 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: The Euro Zone Crisis (Revision) [22 Apr 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Globalisation and the Growth of Ports [10 Apr 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: The UK Balance of Payments in 2011 [4 Apr 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: Floating and Managed Floating Exchange Rates [2 Apr 2012]
Global Economy- the 2012 BRICS Summit [28 Mar 2012]
Life in the Slow Lane - UK Growth in 2011 Lags the Euro Area [28 Mar 2012]
Beyond the Bike - Monetary Policy in Africa [28 Mar 2012]
Evidence of the dangers of protectionism [9 Mar 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: Sovereign Wealth Funds [4 Mar 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Might Oil Prices Bring another Recession? [4 Mar 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: The Dash for Gas in Mozambique [17 Feb 2012]
Economics Explained, by Evan [12 Feb 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: China’s Trade Engine is Spluttering [10 Feb 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: Focus on India - Comparative Advantage [27 Jan 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Focus on China - Trade and Growth [27 Jan 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: Focus on India - Economic Growth [24 Jan 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Exporting to the Booming Chinese Economy [23 Jan 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: Russia Joins the WTO [22 Jan 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Frontier Markets - the New BRICS? [15 Jan 2012]
Beyond the Bike - The Importance of Remittances [15 Jan 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: Competitive Advantage in Trade (Some Videos) [12 Jan 2012]
Unit 4 Macro: UK Trade Patterns [11 Jan 2012]
Unit 1 Micro: Low Cost Airlines Beat the Recession [1 Jan 2012]
Unit 2 Macro: Brazil Overtakes UK in Economic Size [26 Dec 2011]
Beyond the Bike - The Value of Money [19 Nov 2011]
Unit 2 Macro: Should the EU introduce a Tobin Tax? [14 Nov 2011]
AS Macro: The State of British Business [13 Nov 2011]
Unit 4 Macro: Should TNCs make full disclosure on factory wages? [30 Oct 2011]
Can the “invisible hand” solve Africa’s poverty? [13 Oct 2011]
Unit 2 Macro: Can Exports Drive a Recovery? [13 Oct 2011]
Skidelsky in Madrid [12 Oct 2011]
Unit 4 Macro: When China Met Africa [1 Oct 2011]
Unit 4 Macro: Bangladesh and Comparative Advantage in Textiles [19 Sep 2011]
Unit 2 Macro: Economic Growth and Inequality [14 Sep 2011]
Zondle Game: Currencies of the World [30 Aug 2011]
Unit 4 Macro: Baltic Dry Index and Global Weakening [19 Aug 2011]
A surprising example of trade between the USA, China, and Korea. [19 Jul 2011]
UK firms wake up to Brazilian opportunities [21 Jun 2011]
Evan Davis ‘Made in Britain’ - and a new trade data tool to play with [21 Jun 2011]
Six Global Trends Shaping Business Strategy [15 Jun 2011]
Invisible Exports - Originating Journalist is remembered [27 May 2011]
AS Macro Key Term: Supply-Side Policies [25 May 2011]
AS Macro Key Term: Recession [23 May 2011]
AQA A2 Economics - European Context [23 May 2011]
Unit 3 Micro: Monopsony Power in Markets [19 May 2011]
A2 Macro: Revealed Advantage [12 May 2011]
Video Clips on the Chinese Economy [1 May 2011]
UK Economy at a Glance April 2011 [17 Apr 2011]
AS Macro Key Term: Economic Structure [6 Apr 2011]
AS Macro Key Term:  Balance of Payments [6 Apr 2011]
AS Macro Key Term: Current Account Deficit [2 Apr 2011]
AS Micro Revision: Banana Prices [1 Apr 2011]
OCR F585 June 2011: Competitiveness [31 Mar 2011]
Pacific Peso Reaches 29 Year High! [30 Mar 2011]
Keeping Track of UK Macro Objectives [18 Mar 2011]
Focus on Spain [16 Mar 2011]
Timetric: UK Balance of Trade with China [13 Mar 2011]
Dambisa Moyo - How the West was Lost [11 Mar 2011]
Timetric: UK Balance of Trade in Oil [6 Mar 2011]
Timetric: Trade Balance in Manufactured Goods [4 Mar 2011]
Timetric: UK Trade in Goods and Services [3 Mar 2011]
EU Economics: Germany leads Euro Zone revival [25 Feb 2011]
Protectionism and the demise of the US shipping industry [24 Feb 2011]
Unemployment in Germany and Spain [14 Feb 2011]
The US-China Trade Deficit [14 Feb 2011]
China and Africa - Resources on their relationship [14 Feb 2011]
Economics Q&A: Should the CAP be scrapped? [14 Feb 2011]
Mo Tanweer on Global Currency Wars [10 Feb 2011]
Balance of Payments Data - Free Chart Download [9 Feb 2011]
David Smith on Shifting Sands in the Global Economy [8 Feb 2011]
EU Economics: Hopes for a low carbon future in Europe [3 Feb 2011]
Globalisation - Peering into the MIST? [1 Feb 2011]
WTO finds Boeing guilty of using illegal subsidies [1 Feb 2011]
5 Fresh Links: Reforming the EU Common Agricultural Policy [25 Jan 2011]
Changes in Real Prices [24 Jan 2011]
The US-China power balance, trade and currencies [22 Jan 2011]
Economics Q&A: Will the rise in VAT harm the UK’s economic performance? [17 Jan 2011]
Economics Q&A: What economic factors affect the demand for new cars? [9 Jan 2011]
Economics Q&A: Does the UK economy achieve a trade surplus in anything? [6 Jan 2011]
Economics Q&A: Why might Europe’s weaker economies struggle to grow in the next few years? [2 Jan 2011]
EU Economics: European 2011 Revision Guide Launched [31 Dec 2010]
EU Economics: EU Economy in Charts Jan 2011 [29 Dec 2010]
OCR A2 Economics F585 (Feb 2011) - Suggested Reading [7 Dec 2010]
EU has to reduce its import barriers [4 Dec 2010]
Excellent data for trading patterns [22 Nov 2010]
Cutting up cotton subsidies? [15 Nov 2010]
Extend and Enrich with EconoMax [29 Oct 2010]
The Acid Burns Through - Requiem for Neo Liberalism [28 Oct 2010]
Economics at the Movies - Manufactured Landscapes [19 Oct 2010]
Quangos can go [14 Oct 2010]

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