2005年NPR美国国家公共电台三月-business news

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Time now for business news. There was plenty of bad news on the economic front yesterday. Stock prices slid while the cost of a barrel of oil rose by more than two dollars and forty cents. One reason for the moves was a steep drop in the value of the dollar. The dollar bounced back today but it has been taking a pounding because of new concerns that Asian central banks may be losing their thirst for US assets. NPR's James R reports.

The dollar's slide was precipitated¹ by a report from the South Korean Central Bank. The bank has some 100 billion dollars in its foreign reserves. But on Monday, bank officials said they would quit buying as many dollar-denominated assets and put more money into other currencies. This is not the first time an Asian central bank has reduced its dollar purchases. Fred Berkens in the Institute for International Economics says that as the dollar has lost value, many countries are growing nervous about holding dollar-denominated assets. And he says with a huge US trade deficit², which sends a flood of dollars overseas every day, central banks see little hope the problem will correct itself anytime soon.

The fundamental message for Americans is that the chickens are starting to go home to roost. We have been living off the rest of the world in a major sense for many years, borrowing massively abroad to finance our own economy.

Berksen says the fact that South Korea was so open about its plans could make the dollar's problems worse.He says it could undermine confidence in the dollar among currency traders who will sell off even more.

The dollar's decline is good for US manufacturers making their products more competitive overseas, but it could also push up interest rates over time and slow the borrowed economy. And that left many stock investors³ worried. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.6% of its value. At the same time , oil prices hit a three month high. The surge followed reports of colder weather in Europe and the United States and the possibility of an OPEC production cut. But the decline of the dollar also was cited as one reason for the increase.Jame's R.NPR news, New York.