[PEN-L:32890] Re: Dollar falls against yen

[Chris Burford <cburford@xxxxxxxxxx>]

At 08/12/02 22:17 -0800, Sabri wrote:
> 12/09 00:21
> Dollar Falls Against Yen; Post Reports Snow to Replace O'Neill
> By John Brinsley



> "The appointment of someone from industry is disappointing for
> the dollar," said Shigehiro Kamimura, manager of the market
> trading department at Asahi Bank Ltd. "It implies the U.S. won't
> tolerate a weaker yen."


In other words Japanese capital fears that US capital will be more
competitive in goods and services, and its chances of recovery without
further brutal surgery on its present mass of capital, have receded.

It also suggests that the different imperialist blocs are eyeing each other
nervously as the global economy slows down.


The Bush strategy as summarised by Mike and Doug, of tax cuts for the rich,
and further deregulation, may make some sense in terms of international
competition - essentially it is an intensification of the the US formula of
widening economic class differences within the USA and taking advantage of
the combination of massive amounts of capital together with a large cheap
labour force. But it will only work if the USA can continue to accumulate a
disproportionate amount of the total global mass of exchange value. The
other imperialist blocs like Japan and Europe may be anxious, but at a time
of restricted global growth they may not be willing just to agree to
arrangements convenient for the USA. They may take defensive action against
the weakening of the dollar in the short term as a store of value.

> In his other post Sabri wrote:
>
>  I expect that
> M-M' phase will soon be over because it doesn't work anymore and
> we will soon be back to M-C-M'phase.
>
> Sabri



The way I keep some bearings in this is to say that sensible capitalists in
a crisis go back to the importance of living labour. Some dead capital may
have to be sacrificed, but if the capitalist/imperialist national
consortium can continue to produce and accumulate it has a better chance of
keeping its aggregate mass of capital in tact relative to other national
masses of capital.


Behind the bland murmurings, the question is who is going to bear the
international burden of the latest crisis of capitalism?



Chris Burford

London