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To: John Hunt who wrote (26015)	1/12/1999 1:12:00 PM
From: Giraffe	Respond to of 116897

Rubin Sticks With Strong U.S. Dollar Policy By Knut Engelmann WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin said Tuesday the administration's preference for a strong U.S. dollar remained unchanged, helping to boost the dollar on jittery world currency markets. Speaking only hours after Japanese authorities reportedly intervened on the foreign exchange market to buy dollars for yen in a bid to halt the Japanese currency's recent surge against the dollar, Rubin reiterated the strong U.S. currency had served the interests of the world's top economy well. "A strong dollar has served us well and our dollar policy remains absolutely unchanged," Rubin told reporters after a breakfast meeting with Argentine President Carlos Menem. He declined to comment on specific foreign exchange levels -- as is his custom -- or what he described as the "asserted" action by the Bank of Japan during overnight trading hours. Traders said the central bank may have spent more than $1 billion in the early hours of Tokyo trading alone to boost the dollar, their first such move since August 1995. Rubin's comments boosted the dollar by almost half a yen to 112 yen after it had slipped to 111.50 earlier in the day. The dollar earlier had fallen to as low as 108.21 yen, its lowest level in 28 months. Rubin declined to answer a question on whether the yen's recent appreciation against the dollar had been bad news for the world economy. "I think the strength of the American economy has been absolutely central to restoring the health of the global economy," he noted. Spurred by hopes that Tokyo may finally get serious about lifting its economy out of a deep slump, the yen has risen sharply against the dollar ever since it hit an eight-year low of 147.63 per dollar last August. But the yen's almost meteoric rise is unlikely to please Japanese authorities, since it makes Japanese exports more expensive in dollar terms and thus may hamper a continued recovery in the country's recession-struck economy. Rubin has long championed a strong dollar policy, which he has repeatedly quoted as a key reason for low inflation and strong growth in the U.S. economy over the past few years. But worries that the U.S. economy may be headed for a slowdown this year after almost eight years of uninterrupted growth -- in part due to continued jitters in the crisis-hit economies of Asia and Latin America -- have dimmed the dollar's shine on the world's huge foreign exchange markets. Concern that Europe's new single currency, the euro, may challenge the dollar's traditional role as the world's prime reserve currency, has also weighed on the dollar. The euro made its debut on the world stage at the start of the year. Still, worries that official European interest rates may come down further to help cushion an expected slowdown in European growth have kept markets on edge about the euro's immediate future. Lower European interest rates would make it less attractive for investors to hold euro-denominated assets, boosting the allure of the dollar.

To: John Hunt who wrote (26015)	1/12/1999 1:13:00 PM
From: Serge Collins	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116897

Gold is down a whopping $5.55 today. eom

To: John Hunt who wrote (26015)	1/12/1999 1:37:00 PM
From: long-gone	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116897

I hate to say this, but Ron is right. The US dollar is to highly valued based on the trade problems. Jim Rogers has said the same thing for 2 years. This goes back to what I said also, we can not simply sale to each other and the world and handle the information for the world! We need to be able to mine, farm, and manufacture(at a profit); so we can sell these items to the world. We are becoming(have become?) nothing more than a service economy! Look at what Ron & I had our problems about. I was worried that our NG would impose martial law. These guys are not the mighty warriors of days gone by, the will serve us, they are a cross section of our nation, and may have no other abilities than to serve and deliver - just like the rest of us. With the help of our government, we may have lost the ability to manufacture, farm, mine, or even fight. Were it not for technology and the "limited action" the situation in Iraq might well not be the same. Just look at our current economy: we are able to build overpriced homes, shopping centers, and buy/sell overpriced internet stocks. What have we become? A nation of crisis intervention specialists, mental therapists, prison keepers, gargbage people, sales people and management. There was a reason that for the last weeks the $ has been weaker, and it will be again unless something changes - and maybe it should be.