Trump Doesn’t Understand Currency Wars, Either
His misguided decision to reinstate steel tariffs on Brazil and Argentina misses one thing: Depressed currencies mean they are the losers.
Is Trump “crazy like a fox,” or does he not understand what he’s doing?
Photographer: Michael Reynolds/EPA POOL/Bloomberg
What a difference a decade makes. Back in September 2010, Guido Mantega, Brazil’s then-finance minister, was complaining bitterly about “currency wars,” and claiming the Federal Reserve’s ultra-loose monetary policy of the time was unfairly hurting his economy. “We’re in the midst of an international currency war, a general weakening of currency,” he said then. “This threatens us because it takes away our competitiveness.”
Fast forward to December 2019, and we have President Donald Trump’s latest furious denunciation of exactly the same thing — only this time, he says that Brazil (as well as Argentina) is being unfair. In his latest tweet heard around the world, he said: “Brazil and Argentina have been presiding over a massive devaluation of their currencies. which is not good for our farmers.”