America's export drive

If the US - the world's importer of last resort - is going on an export drive, the implications for Asia may be profound, writes Aberdeen's Hugh Young.

During his State of the Union address, President Obama pledged to double America's exports over the next five years, which is precisely the strategy most Asian countries have pursued in recent decades. If the world's importer of last resort is going on an export drive, the implications for Asia may be profound. What was obvious to Obama, and to many others, was America's huge trade deficit had caused significant weaknesses to build on in the country's economy. Although the link is a complex one, many see the recent spike in unemployment as the result of globalisation and the transfer ...