Global central bank interventions raise specter of ‘currency war’ MarketWatch 2/6/2021
Are central banks on the verge of a currency war with the U.S?
That’s the question on the minds of some investors and economists as the U.S. dollar’s decline in the year has forced central banks across the world to intervene in their own currencies at the risk of attracting the scrutiny of the new Biden administration which is eager to support U.S. factories and create manufacturing jobs.
With policy interest rates for some central banks including the European Central Bank near zero, monetary policymakers are now trying to fend off an appreciation of their currencies to support their pandemic-battered economies and maintain the competitiveness of their countrys’ exports.
SNBâs Frenzied Currency Battle May Give Way to Easier 2021
This content was published on December 16, 2020 - 05:00
December 16, 2020 - 05:00
(Bloomberg) Swiss National Bank President Thomas Jordan has reason to expect a less intense 2021 after a multi-billion currency battle this year that put Switzerland in the crosshairs of U.S. authorities.
The combination of a landmark European Union fiscal package and the anticipated global economic recovery driven by the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines will likely dampen demand for haven assets such as the Swiss franc, and a survey sees the currency weakening through 2021.
That should bring relief for Jordan ahead of the last scheduled policy decision of 2020 on Thursday. It means the SNB wonât have to dig as deep as it did this year to prevent the currency from appreciating, spending 90 billion francs ($102 billion) in the first half alone in an escalation of its seemingly endless currency fight.