On Thursday, the currencies of developing countries, from Brazil to Indonesia, faced a sharp drop, forcing central banks to take urgent action. The reason for concern was the statement of the US Federal Reserve, which hinted at a not so significant reduction in interest rates next year as previously expected.
Investors interpreted this as a sign of inflationary risks associated with the policy of the new US president in the field of immigration and trade. The result was an increase in US government bond yields and the dollar reaching two-year highs.
As a result, the Indian rupee set a new historical low, the South Korean won collapsed to 15-year lows, and the Indonesian rupiah updated the minimum for the last 4 months.
Higher rates in the United States may re-exacerbate the problems associated with foreign exchange and capital flows that emerging markets have just begun to overcome. The strengthening of the dollar can provoke an outflow of funds from their markets, weaken national currencies and, as a result, increase inflation and increase the level of instability in the markets.
To counteract the crisis, the central banks of South Korea, India and Indonesia began actively selling dollars and openly declaring their readiness for intervention.