Currencies

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Asian markets this week gave a lively taster of what a full-blown currency war might look like under Trump 2.0. But we are not at panic stations yet, and probably (touch wood) will not be any time soon.It has, to be sure, been a week of high drama in a typically sleepy corner of markets. Seemingly out of nowhere, the Taiwanese dollar shot to the moon, jumping by, at the extremes, 10...

Sign up to receive CFR President Mike Froman’s analysis on the most important foreign policy story of the week, delivered to your inbox every Friday afternoon. Subscribe to The World This Week. More From Our Experts Greetings from Tokyo. More on: Japan United States U.S. Economy Trade My deep interest in Japan dates back to my days working as a young summer associate at a Japanese law firm in Tokyo in 1989. (My now-wife, Nancy, worked at the rival law firm.) In those days, Japan was in the midst of an incredible economic boom...

TL;DR The EU has issued new guidance that restricts how esports publishers can use virtual currencies. Virtual currencies enable frictionless in-game microtransactions and drive a lot of esports revenues. The gaming industry isn’t happy, and two of its leading bodies have accused regulators of overreach. Consumer advocates argue that game monetization practices mask the true cost of in-game purchases and make them hard to track. Now that the EU has signalled the direction of travel, US rule-makers might follow. Microtransactions with virtual currencies are a top earner for esports titles,...

In 1932, the small Austrian town of Wörgl was buckling under the weight of the Great Depression, with crumbling infrastructure, rising unemployment and ballooning debt. But within just a year, all that changed: Local unemployment dropped by 25 percent despite rising by 19 percent in the rest of Austria and tax revenue skyrocketed, fueling extensive municipal investment in road repair, a new bridge and even a ski jump—a transformation that is still referred to today as "the Miracle of Wörgl."Unsurprisingly, the miracle was made possible by money, but not the...

Something unusual is happening in global currency markets, and most people aren’t paying attention. This week, the Taiwan dollar surged more than 5% in a single day, recording its biggest jump since 1988. At the same time, Asian banks, exporters, and sovereign funds are increasingly trying to bypass the US dollar in their transactions. It’s not a full-blown crisis, yet, but the message is clear: confidence in the US dollar is slipping, and capital is moving.What used to be a slow drift is now turning into something larger. A big paradigm shift is...

The global sovereign credit rating agency, Morningstar DBRS on Friday upgraded India’s Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency – Issuer Ratings from BBB (low) to BBB with a Stable trend.India’s Short-Term Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Ratings were also upgraded to R-2 (high) from R-2 (middle) with a Stable trend.Key drivers for the upgrade include India’s structural reforms through infrastructure investments, digitalisation etc., all of which facilitated fiscal consolidation (declining debt and deficit) and sustained high growth (clocking an average GDP growth of 8.2% during FY22-25) with macroeconomic stability (stabilised inflation,...

The Indian rupee extended its fall on Friday, declining by 30 paise against the US dollar, as intensifying geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan sparked risk-off sentiment in the market. Increased demand for the US dollar also dented investor sentiments.Rupee depreciated 30 paise to open at 85.88 against the greenback on Friday. The local currency saw its steepest single-day fall in more than two-and-a-half years in the previous session and settled 81 paise lower at 85.58 against the US dollar on.The India-Pakistan conflict, stronger dollar, rise in crude oil prices...

The rupee depreciated 30 paise to 85.88 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday, weighed down by intensifying geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan.Forex traders said geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan have sparked risk-off sentiment in the market leading to the rupee weakness. Besides, increased demand for the US dollar further dented investor sentiments. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 85.88 against the greenback, registering a fall of 30 paise over its previous close. On Thursday, the rupee saw its steepest single-day fall...

Asian investors have been rushing to shield themselves from big swings in the US dollar, putting upward pressure on their local currencies and forcing Hong Kong authorities to intervene in the market.Taiwan’s dollar has surged almost 6 per cent against the greenback this month, posting the biggest single-day moves since the 1980s, while Hong Kong’s monetary authority spent the largest weekly amount since 2020 to stop the city state’s currency strengthening beyond a US dollar peg.“It is not even once in a decade — it has been a once in...

Fading US exceptionalism could pave the way for further appreciation of the Singapore dollar against the greenback, said analysts.The Singdollar surged to around 1.29 per US dollar on Monday (May 5) – a level not seen since September 2024. That drove its year-to-date gain to about 5 per cent, with its five-day gain at around 1 per cent.Among other Asian currencies, the Taiwan dollar surged to highs not seen in over 30 years, while the Malaysian ringgit and safe-haven Japanese yen also strengthened. On Friday morning during Asia trade, the...