paul keating warns of "catastrophic fall" in u.s.

News Item : 44
Date Posted : 5/12/2005
Posted By : david

FORMER AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER PAUL KEATING WARNS OF "CATASTROPHIC FALL" IN U.S. DOLLAR.
[Source: The Australian, March 5]

FORMER AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER PAUL KEATING WARNS OF "CATASTROPHIC FALL" IN U.S. DOLLAR. He said massive buying of U.S. government bonds by Chinese and Japanese central banks was blocking the "natural corrective qualities" a U.S. dollar decline would bring. "The Americans have become debt junkies, and China and Japan are providing the hit," he said at a Melbourne conference. "What we have to keep our eye out for [is] a catastrophic fall in the U.S. dollar and a panic about the imbalances," referring to record budget and current account deficits.