With so many currencies fixed against the dollar, without the possibility of adjusting export competitiveness by means of devaluation or appreciation, it was no surprise that the world economy polarized into export surplus and import deficit countries. In the first three months of 2005 alone, the United States ran a current account deficit—an excess of outward payments on trade in goods and services and investment income—of almost $200 billion. For the year it came to $792 billion and was showing signs of further deterioration in 2006. For those on the surplus side of the “global imbalances,”
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