Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg via Getty Images
Steven Mnuchin, U.S. Treasury secretary, speaks during an Economic Club of Washington conversation in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Friday, Jan. 12, 2018.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he spends little time thinking about the weakness of the dollar over the short term, after his previous comments sent the U.S. currency reeling amid fears of a trade war.
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On Wednesday, the dollar plummeted to three-year lows, its biggest one-day drop in 10 months, after Mnuchin suggested a weak greenback would be good for the U.S.
Mnuchin’s comments were widely seen to be indicative of a departure from traditional U.S. policy. The past three presidential administrations and Treasury secretaries have supported a stronger U.S. currency.
Nonetheless, speaking to reporters in snow-clad Davos on Thursday morning, Mnuchin said the U.S. administration was not concerned about the level of the dollar in the short term.
Mnuchin’s comments in the previous session had echoed statements by President Donald Trump, who famously helped turn a market trend of a stronger dollar last January when he said, prior to his inauguration, that the dollar was “too strong” and that U.S. companies couldn’t compete because of it — particularly against the Chinese.
The dollar index has lost more than 10 percent since then, and after Mnuchin’s comment Wednesday morning, it sank to the lowest level since December 2014.
The dollar index, which reflects the greenback’s value against a basket of major currencies, was trading down 0.1 percent at about 89.08 at around 9.45 a.m. London time.
— CNBC’s Patti Domm contributed to this report.
