Keynes and Bown discuss the Trump administration’s decision to name China a currency manipulator. They are joined by former IMF Chief Economist Maury Obstfeld (PIIE, Berkeley), Joseph Gagnon (PIIE), and Alice Fulwood (The Economist), who help explain what affects the value of the US dollar, the history of Chinese currency manipulation, the challenge of identifying a country as a currency manipulator, and the implications of the Trump administration’s actions today.

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• Soumaya Keynes. The Trump administration labels China a currency manipulator. The complaint is more than a bit muddled. The Economist, August 6, 2019.
• Alan Beattie. Donald Trump sets a toothless dog loose on China. Making the ‘currency manipulator’ designation now is logically incomprehensible. Financial Times. August 6, 2019.
• C. Fred Bergsten and Joseph E. Gagnon. Currency Conflict and Trade Policy: A New Strategy for the United States. Peterson Institute for International Economics, 2017.