“America Doesn’t Need A Strong Dollar Policy

That was the proposition debated on NPR’s Intelligence Squared, whose website  describes the debate as follows: 

It’s often taken for granted that America needs a strong dollar.  When the value of the U.S. dollar is strong relative to other currencies, it becomes attractive to investors and allows Americans to buy foreign goods and services cheaply.  But in times of recession, are we better off with a weak dollar that stimulates U.S. manufacturing by making our goods cheaper and more competitive?  Or will the loss of purchasing power and currency manipulation abroad, offset the potential gains?

The debaters included Fredric Miskin (Columbia Business School) and John Taylor (Chairman and Founder, FX Concepts) arguing in favor of the motion and Steve Forbes(Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, Forbes Media) and James Grant (Editor and Founder, Grant’s Interest Rate Observer).