US removes India from its currency monitoring list: Details here
The US has taken India off its currency watchlist of major trading partners on Wednesday after the country took certain steps to prevent foreign exchange irregularities. The US Treasury Department, in its Semiannual Report on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies to US Congress, removed India, along with Switzerland, from the currency monitoring list of countries with "potentially questionable foreign exchange policies". Here's more.
India was placed in the currency monitoring list last year
In October 2018, the US had added India to the bi-annual currency watchlist along with China, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, and South Korea. While India and Switzerland have been removed now, the US continued to keep China on its currency monitoring list. It has also urged China to take the required measures in order to avoid a "persistently weak currency".
Urge China to avoid a persistently weak currency: Treasury Secretary
"Treasury continues to urge China to...avoid a persistently weak currency," stated US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. He said the value of China's renminbi against the US dollar fell by 8% over the last year while noting that its trade surplus with the US widened. "China's goods trade surplus with US stands at $419 billion over the four quarters through December 2018," the report said.
Nine major trading partners continue to warrant placement: Mnuchin
Apart from China, countries that continued to remain on the US's currency watch list included Japan, South Korea, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Singapore, showed the Department's latest report. "Treasury found that nine major trading partners continue to warrant placement on Treasury's 'Monitoring List' of major trading partners that merit close attention to their currency practices," Mnuchin said.
Department declined to designate any trade partner as 'currency manipulator'
Meanwhile, the Treasury Department also declined to designate any of its major trading partners, including China, as "currency manipulator". The report concluded, "No trading partner was found to have met the 1988 legislative standards during the current reporting period."
