Is a strong U.S. dollar always good for the U.S. and global economies? Why or Why not?

Answer 1

A strong U.S. dollar is not always good for the U.S. With a strong dollar Americans are able to buy more goods from abroad, however, our exports will be more expensive so any business that exports will suffer. One reason why we buy so much from China is because their currency is weaker than ours so it's less expensive to buy from them. Similarly, if the U.S. dollar is weak then our exports are more attractive which often helps the manufacturing sector. It's best to find some sort of middle ground where our dollar has decent purchasing power to buy goods from abroad but also isn't so strong that no one will buy our exports.

Answer 2

A weak dollar means higher prices, especially in the case of the USA, which doesn't make that much physical STUFF any more. Everything we purchase, from toys to clothes to cars to computers, we purchase from overseas.

You think it's difficult to make ends meet, today? Just wait until we have a weak dollar.

And to all those folks who keep harpin on, about how our exports will go up, when the dollar goes down, remember Germany. They had the strongest currency in Europe, and yet still managed to do pretty well, on the export side, because everything they built was high-quality. Not like American stuff, which is designed to fall apart after a year or two.

Answer 3

I have learned to be very careful when questions include the word "always" or "never".

Like so many things in life, there is a balancing act going on. As others have said, the relative value of the dollar affects imports and exports. The US is one of the few countries in the world which also needs to worry about foreigners buying and selling dollar-denominated investment securities, primarily US Government bonds.

When the dollar increases in value relative to other currencies US bonds are an attractive investment. When the dollar falls US bonds become a poor investment.

Answer 4

A strong U.S. dollar is always good for this country. It increases our country's purchasing and selling power on a global scale. A weak U.S. dollar buys less goods from foreign nations. It also buys less goods for our own citizens, thus causing a depressed economy. Less people will have the purchasing power to buy goods beyond their basic needs in life. Business suffers due to a reduction in sales. It affects everyone from big business down to the working class.

Answer 5

No. It means say if you are trading with Mexico and they have a weak peso that they can't afford to buy US goods so you sell less, and they can produce basic goods at a lower price than you can produce them. Then you start to complain about all your jobs going to Mexico.