China May Dip Into Reserves

Yesterday, the Forex Blog reported that Central Banks and Sovereign Wealth Funds appear to be losing confidence in the Dollar. To follow up with a specific example, a high-ranking Chinese policymaker recently suggested that China should move spend some of its reserves since they are rapidly losing value in RMB terms. The official offered that a portion be used to purchase foreign energy assets, in order to mitigate against both the falling Dollar and rising oil. There is clearly a trend among institutional holders of Dollars to use the currency to purchase US assets. Witness the recent (separate) sales of the Chrysler and GM Buildings to Middle Eastern buyers. With nearly $2 Trillion in foreign exchange reserves, however, China is in a class by itself, and any indication of its frustration with the Dollar should be taken very seriously.