The US Treasury Department has designated Vietnam and Switzerland as “currency manipulators.” while placing China, India and several other countries on its “monitoring list.”
“The Treasury Department has taken a strong step today to safeguard economic growth and opportunity for American workers and businesses,” Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement on Wednesday, as he unveiled the department’s report on the “manipulators.”
The “currency manipulator” designations is based on three criteria; a $20 billion-plus trade surplus with the US, current account surplus exceeding two percent of GDP and currency intervention exceeding two percent of GDP.
Both Switzerland and Vietnam meet the criteria, with the latter boasting a trade surplus of a whopping $57 billion, which has triggered repeated accusations from Washington that it is deliberately undervaluing its currency. Switzerland, which was added to the monitoring list in January, has already reacted to the designation with the Swiss National Bank promising to continue its aggressive monetary policies regardless of US pressure and saying it “does not engage in any form of currency manipulation.”
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