伯南克：美聯(lián)儲支持強勢美元

The Federal Reserve is monitoring currency markets “closely” and will conduct policy in a way that will “help ensure that the dollar is strong”, Ben Bernanke said yesterday in rare comments on the US currency.

美聯(lián)儲(Fed)主席本•伯南克(Ben Bernanke)昨日罕見地就美元發(fā)表言論，表示美聯(lián)儲正“密切”監(jiān)視匯率市場動向，將以“有助于確保美元強勢”的方式推行政策。

In remarks apparently aimed at reassuring markets and foreign governments that the central bank is not indifferent to the fate of the dollar, the Fed chairman said “we are attentive to the implications of changes in the value of the dollar”.

伯南克的言論明顯是為了安撫市場和外國政府，表明美聯(lián)儲對美元的命運并非漠不關心，他表示：“我們在留意著美元價值變動的影響。”

He added that the Fed “will continue to formulate policy to guard against risks to our dual mandate to foster both maximum employment and price stability” – and that in doing so it would support the value of the currency.

他又表示，美聯(lián)儲“將繼續(xù)制定相應政策，從我們的雙重使命（促進就業(yè)最大化和維持物價穩(wěn)定）出發(fā)，防范風險”，為此，美聯(lián)儲將支撐美元的價值。

The dollar briefly jumped on his remarks, but then gave up some gains as traders questioned whether Mr Bernanke was prepared to go beyond talking in support of the currency.

伯南克發(fā)表上述言論后，美元短暫上揚，但很快就回吐部分漲幅，因為交易員懷疑伯南克是否真的準備采取行動支持美元。

For the Fed chairman to comment on currencies at all is highly unusual. By convention, the US Treasury secretary is the sole US official who talks about the dollar.

美聯(lián)儲主席就匯率發(fā)表言論是極為罕見的，按照美國的慣例，財長是談論美元的唯一官員。

Mr Bernanke's comments came amid growing international unease about the weakness in the dollar, which forms a backdrop to President Barack Obama's tour of Asia. Liu Mingkang, China's banking regulator, criticised the Fed at the weekend for fuelling the dollar carry trade in which investors borrow dollars at ultra-low interest rates and invest in higher-yielding assets abroad, creating the risk of new asset price bubbles.

伯南克發(fā)表上述言論之際，國際社會日益擔憂美元的疲勢，這構成美國總統(tǒng)巴拉克·奧巴馬(Barack Obama)訪問亞洲之行的背景之一。上周末，中國銀監(jiān)會主席劉明康指責美聯(lián)儲助長美元套息交易，稱這可能造成新的資產(chǎn)價格泡沫。套息交易是指投資者以極低利率借入美元，然后投資于收益率較高的海外資產(chǎn)。

The Fed chairman indicated that the US central bank would not ignore the impact of rising commodity prices when evaluating the outlook for inflation. He said he would not rule out using interest rates to combat new asset price bubbles, even though he did not see obvious mispricing in the US at this stage.

伯南克表示，美聯(lián)儲在評估通脹前景時，不會忽視大宗商品價格持續(xù)上漲的影響。他表示，他不排除動用利率來遏制新的資產(chǎn)價格泡沫，即便他認為現(xiàn)階段美國并不存在明顯的價格失調(diào)。