Journal Article

The Currency War

Al makadmi, Hekmat

2014

Overview

Currency war, also known as competitive devaluation, is a condition in international affairs countries competes against each other to achieve a relatively low exchange rate for their own currency. As the price to buy a particular currency falls so too does the real price of exports from the country. Imports become more expensive. So domestic industry, and thus employment, receives a boost in demand from both domestic and foreign markets. However, the price increase for imports can harm citizens' purchasing power. The policy can also trigger retaliatory action by other countries which in turn can lead to a general decline in international trade, harming all countries. Competitive devaluation has been rare through most of history as countries have generally preferred to maintain a high value for their currency. Countries have allowed market forces to work or have participated in systems of managed exchanges rates. An important episode of currency war occurred in the 1930s. As countries abandoned the Gold Standard during the Great Depression, they used currency devaluations to stimulate their economies. Since this effectively pushes unemployment overseas, trading partners quickly retaliated with their own devaluations. The period is considered to have been an adverse situation for all concerned as unpredictable changes in exchange rates reduced overall international trade.

• Publisher: جامعة طرابلس - نقابة أعضاء هيئة التدريس
• Subject: الاستثمار / السياسة النقدية / النقود