The Treasury Department’s Manipulated Currency Crescendo

The Treasury Department’s International Affairs office again found no outright manipulation in its semi-annual update on main trading partner exchange rate practice under 25-year old legislation, although it cited “inadequate” global demand rebalancing and increased intervention and reserve accumulation toward the end of 2013. The lack of adjustment undermines the recent G-20 commitment to boost GDP growth 2 percent over the next five years, and Germany and China in particular must change their models, the report urged. Germany’s current account surplus is over 7 percent of GDP as the rest of the Euro-zone also exhibits positive external accounts often due to weak internal purchasing power. Last year the Chinese renimbi appreciated 3 percent but in the first quarter swung the same amount in the opposite direction as the daily fluctuation band doubled to 2 percent. Market determination remains “incomplete” in light of last year’s $450 billion in balance of payments inflows bringing reserves to $4 trillion and productivity gains suggesting undervaluation. While the intent may be to inject two-way volatility “serious concerns” include the absence of intervention and reserve data under the IMF’s SDDS standard as a big emerging economy outlier. Officials have hinted that depreciation against the dollar may continue as they gradually deflate credit and property bubbles while preserving 7.5 percent output expansion. A new mini-stimulus program was ruled out as Q1 social financing figures show a sharp dip in trusts and corporate bonds. The central bank has imposed tougher rules on the former and the latter was shaken by a handful of defaults. Real estate developers are already highly-leveraged and face currency strains from borrowing abroad as sales slow noticeably outside major cities. They have been battered on the Shanghai and Hong Kong exchanges as the two launched individual investor cross-trading in an attempt to lift sentiment. The Treasury survey also profiled Taiwan which had its biggest current account surplus since the 1980s the past year and maintains capital account restrictions. The managed float regime has been uneven and its $415 billion in reserves are “excessive by any metric.”   Unlike other major developing markets the main portfolio outflow source with curbs since the Federal Reserve’s tapering signal last May was not foreign investors but local life insurers allocating overseas.

Korea was criticized despite its pledge to forgo competitive devaluation as the current account surplus was the highest since the Asian financial crisis with authorities intervening “aggressively” against won strength. Personal consumption has been hampered by household debt, but President Park has unveiled reforms to double per-capita income to $40,000 and shift away from exports dominated by the chaebol groups that again incited public outcry with recent disclosures of top executive compensation packages. Brazil’s $85 billion short dollar position under its swap and spot operations also was highlighted in the brief survey and its hedging and liquidity rationale was given a pass through mid-year in a bow to opinion manipulation.