The Three Worst Currencies of 2017 Show That Politics, Not Economics, Are Driving Markets
Where Emerging-Market Currencies Are Headed in 2017
Forget about current-account deficits, purchasing-power parity, and government debt.
The new year's currency action suggests politics is trumping economics in the world's foreign-exchange markets, according to Societe Generale Global Strategist Kit Juckes. Consider the three worst-performing currencies in the first ten days of the year, he said in a note on Wednesday.
These laggards "all face significant political headwinds: terror attacks and government interference in monetary policy in Turkey, Brexit-dithering in the U.K., and fears of U.S. protectionism in Mexico," he writes. "The takeaway, two weeks into the year, is that as expected, politics is at least as important as economics in driving markets in 2017."