True lesson of US dollar privilege won’t be lost on expanded Brics

In his challenging new book The Power of Money, former Harvard economist Paul Sheard boldly says that “government debt never has to be repaid” provided the debt is denominated in the issuer’s own currency and that the currency is a widely acceptable one.

It is an appealing idea for those governments in the Brics group – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – that are anxious to lessen their US dollar dependence. The United States derives considerable power from its ability to finance its expanding budget and external deficits.

Source: SCMP