Trump Might Have a Case When He Calls Germany a Currency Manipulator

In his quest to find enemies of the dollar, President Donald Trump accused Germany of manipulating its currency to exploit the U.S. He might have a case, but only superficially.

The German trade surplus hit a record high of €257.3 billion last year, exceeding 2015's €248.2 billion. Its current account surplus, which besides trade in goods also includes trade in services and investment flows, hit the equivalent of around $284 billion, exceeding China's surplus. This seems to justify the statement made by Trump's trade advisor, Peter Navarro, who last month said Germany was using the "grossly undervalued" euro as an "implicit Deutsche mark" to "exploit" the U.S. and its other EU trading partners.

Let's remember, though, that Germany doesn't have its own currency, as it shares the euro with 18 other nations. So, really, how much truth can there be in the statement that it manipulates its currency?

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