 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
||
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
Dollars and "Sense"
Daniel DiMicco, Vice Chairman, President & CEO of Nucor Corporation, had a question and answer session after his talk on trade and the dollar "Dollars and "Sense": The impact of the Strong-Dollar Policy on the US manufacturing Industry"
He took notes on the Q&A, and asked that we post them.
Question-ALL CONSUMERS ARE NOT PRODUCERS.
Answer-----Looking at the population in the USA, my comment that
all consumers are first producers so they can have earnings to consume with,
is factual. Your point that only the working population is a producer, but
that the other larger group of Americans are not, is completely incorrect.
If you think about who makes up the non-working group, they are either
children/spouses, in which case they can't consume unless there is a
producer in the house or they are on the Gov't dole. The Gov't gets it's
money from-you guessed it-- from producers ! ! ! ! ! The other remaining
groups are retirees who got their ability to consume from-yep you guessed
it-from the time they were PRODUCERS ! ! ! ! ! ! !
So your nitpicking question, or better said, challenge, was all
WRONG. All consumers are first producers either directly, or as a dependent
or as one living off their producing years.
Question---What do you propose to do to weaken the Dollar-raise interest rates?
Answer----The proper question is what are you going to do to
stop currency manipulation by our trading 'partners' ? Currency manipulation
by Asian countries that keeps the Dollar artificially and improperly
strong. The answer is to hold these countries accountable for playing by
all
the WTO/IMF rules, not just the ones they choose to play by because it
better suits there selfish interests. This has been done in the past. We
have a powerful tool called access to our markets. Unless we have a trading
system that is based on the free floating of currencies, we will not have
the healthy global trading system that the world so desperately needs. We
must insist on FAIR TRADE and end the trade distorting practices of the many
countries who have developed it into a science. There are many things that
can be done and they must be done in an organized and thoughtful manner BUT
THEY MUST BE DONE AND DONE NOW ! ! ! And modest interest rate increases and moderate, but low levels of inflation, are acceptable as possible tools as
well. We have overreacted to things when interest rates are at 1% and
inflation at near today's low levels. These overreactions create extreme
distortions like our $550 Billion plus trade deficit for 2003 and the scary
dependency on foreign purchases of treasuries to finance our gluttonous
appetites for consumption on other peoples money. The days of extremes in
reactions are not far off to our dual deficit problems that are growing
unchecked and to already dangerous levels. We are writing checks that our
ability to produce can't pay. Our future standard of living and that of our
children's children won't be able to pay for either.
Home | Join NABE® | Contact NABE® | Site Map | Search
National Association for Business Economics
1233 20th Street NW #505
Washington, DC 20036
Phone 202.463.6223 Fax 202.463.6239
nabe@nabe.com
© 2003, NABE®
