09 January 2011

Cheap assets

A nation like China that has abundant, cheap labor can afford to keep its currency under-valued for the sake of increasing exports because it doesn't have many assets for foreign interests to buy; and, to the extent there is a question about foreign control on national assets, the governments can control the matter by fiat. 
A nation like the US that has high-priced labor cannot balance its trade deficits by de-valuing its currency without exposing its asset base to foreign exploitation. 

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