Exchange Rate Accusations

It's not just about China.  From the Washington Post:

This week, a top aide to French President Nicolas Sarkozy called the value of the dollar "a disaster" for Europe, warning of dire consequences to the global economy if it remains at its current levels. In some circles, the dollar's decline is seen as a protectionist move by the United States -- something U.S. officials have strongly denied.

"If the dollar is going down this way, it is because that is what the Americans want," economic commentator Yves de Kerdrel wrote in the French newspaper Le Figaro this week. "In a globalized economy where national egoisms persist but where customs barriers have almost disappeared, the best protection consists in playing on exchange rates."

Yet another reason to have some more detailed international standards on exchange rates, so as to avoid these kinds of suspicions.