Amid widespread concerns in the foreign exchange market that the Trump administration might use policy measures to devalue the dollar, the latest statement from the U.S. Treasury aims to calm market fluctuations. According to sources cited by media on May 14, the U.S. will not use strategies to weaken the dollar as leverage in advancing global trade agreements. This news spurred a 20-point short-term rise in the Dollar Index, pushing it back above 101 and turning the day's overall trend positive.
Treasury denies including "weak dollar" in the trade agenda
The report notes that U.S. Treasury Secretary Besent is the only official in the Trump administration authorized to handle exchange rate issues. According to insiders, any negotiations on currency policy must involve his direct participation. The Treasury spokesman declined to comment on this.
This statement can be seen as an attempt by U.S. officials to clarify market misconceptions. Besent conveyed a similar perspective to finance ministers from several countries during the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meeting in April and reiterated the "strong dollar" stance at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles, emphasizing that the United States is the "preferred destination" for global capital.
Dollar Index rebounds, but devaluation trends still concern the market
Despite stabilization signals from the U.S., the Dollar Index has fallen by about 8% since the beginning of the year. Since May, intense volatility in Asian currencies has heightened market anxiety: the South Korean Won appreciated nearly 2% against the dollar during Wednesday's session, and the New Taiwan Dollar recorded its largest single-day gain since 1988 earlier this month. The dollar continues to weaken against the Euro and the British Pound.
The short-term rise of the Dollar Index is viewed by global investors as naturally aligning with the logic of a "weak dollar" in the context of the U.S. government's economic agenda to reduce trade deficits and revitalize manufacturing. Although officially denied, the market has implicitly priced in devaluation expectations.
Conclusion: Dollar faces a new normal, policy transparency is crucial
Although the U.S. denies actively promoting currency devaluation, market caution remains. For investors, the future trajectory of the dollar will be influenced by the substantive content of policies and the dynamics of international capital flows. As the Trump administration accelerates its global trade strategies, exchange rate volatility is expected to become a key variable in the financial markets, particularly for countries like Japan and South Korea that are on the foreign exchange "monitoring list," whose monetary policy leeway will face increased external constraints.
