China’s currency, the renminbi, has been gradually losing value since mid-April, and on Tuesday it was at its weakest point in a decade. If the currency weakens any further, it could fall below the psychologically important level of 7 renminbi to the dollar. In the arsenal of trade disputes, currencies can be potent weapons. But China has good reason to keep its currency from weakening, and it appears to have acted in recent weeks to prop it up. Currencies may be potent weapons, but they are blunt ones — and they can boomerang against those who use them.

Source: New York Times October 30, 2018 13:28 UTC