UN Panel says world should ditch dollar

[Dios]

Not sure if theres a thread on this somewhere already, but an interesting article here about the possiblity of the removal of the dollar as the global currency.

LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - A U.N. panel will next week recommend that the world ditch the dollar as its reserve currency in favor of a shared basket of currencies, a member of the panel said on Wednesday, adding to pressure on the dollar.

Currency specialist Avinash Persaud, a member of the panel of experts, told a Reuters Funds Summit in Luxembourg that the proposal was to create something like the old Ecu, or European currency unit, that was a hard-traded, weighted basket.

...

"Speculation that major central banks would begin rebalancing their FX reserves has risen since the intensification of the dollar's slide between 2002 and mid-2008," CMC Markets said in a note.

Russia is also planning to propose the creation of a new reserve currency, to be issued by international financial institutions, at the April G20 meeting, according to the text of its proposals published on Monday.

It has significantly reduced the dollar's share in its own reserves in recent years.

...

Persaud said there were two main reasons why policymakers might consider such a move, one being the current desire for a change from the dollar.

The other reason, he said, was the success of the euro, which incorporated a number of currencies but roughly speaking held on to the stability of the old German deutschemark compared with, say, the Greek drachma.

Persaud has long argued that the dollar would give way to the Chinese yuan as a global reserve currency within decades.

So, its not surprising that the Russians might want to dethrone the dollar, but I find the idea of the yuan becoming the global reserve currency highly unlikely, given that its not even freely traded yet, among other things. If this follows through there will be serious repercussions for the US (inability to borrow for one, massive crash in value for another) and probably for that stateside FDI residing in Ireland.

[ibis]

Well, that should generate a few NWO explosions.

[McDave]

As with the advent of a multipolar world, in due course we will have a parallel multipolar currency system. This is already underway with the ascent of the Euro. The dollar won't so much be ditched as alternatives will appear on the scene.

[Dios]

Well, that should generate a few NWO explosions.

I sincerely hope that is metaphorically speaking.

As with the advent of a multipolar world, in due course we will have a parallel multipolar currency system. This is already underway with the ascent of the Euro. The dollar won't so much be ditched as alternatives will appear on the scene.

To an extent, yes, but I doubt it will be as orderly and systematic as that. The US has proven it will extend force via any avenue available in order to maintain the surpremacy of the dollar as the de facto global currency, this situation is unlikely to be any different. If they lose that status they lose the little tax uncle sam gets on every major international trade made in the world, they lose the ability to get loans by clicking their fingers, in short they cease to be the financial centre of the world.

Interesting times.

[McDave]

The US has proven it will extend force via any avenue available in order to maintain the surpremacy of the dollar as the de facto global currency, this situation is unlikely to be any different. If they lose that status they lose the little tax uncle sam gets on every major international trade made in the world, they lose the ability to get loans by clicking their fingers, in short they cease to be the financial centre of the world.

I think they've lost that status already. No-one else is bigger then them yet. But the dominance has been shattered and the trends are away from a single power. It was their attempts to maintain supremacy at all costs through the invasion of Iraq that exposed their limitations. Once the spell was broken...