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Mnuchin made the remark, seen by markets as a departure from
traditional U.S. currency policy, at the World Economic Forum in
Davos, where other world leaders have made swipes at what they
see as U.S. protectionism.
Tough U.S. talk on trade, on the eve of Trump's arrival at the
Swiss ski resort on Thursday, contrasted sharply with a chorus
of government leaders, from India and Brazil to Germany and
Canada, who urged cooperation and criticized protectionism.
"Obviously a weaker dollar is good for us as it relates to trade
and opportunities," Mnuchin told a press briefing.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross later told CNBC that his
colleague was "not advocating for a weaker dollar", but he also
struck a combative tone.
Asked if he was concerned about sparking a trade war, Ross said:
"Trade war has been in place for quite a little while, the
difference is the U.S. troops are now coming to the ramparts.”
Pressed about Mnuchin's remarks, White House spokeswoman Sarah
Sanders said at a daily briefing in Washington: "We believe in a
free-floating currency. The president has always believed in
that."
"We have ... a very stable dollar, in large part due to how well
the U.S. economy is doing right now," she added.
The annual Davos gathering of world leaders, chief executives
and non-governmental agencies has long embraced globalization,
free trade and liberal values.
Trump, the first sitting U.S. president to attend the forum
since Bill Clinton in 2000, has questioned that world view. He
has threatened to withdraw from the North American Free Trade
Agreement (NAFTA), disavowed the global climate change accord
and criticized institutions such as the United Nations and NATO.
With Trump expected to address the summit on Friday, world
leaders here have raised concerns about a return to greater
economic protectionism.
Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, asked what his message
to Trump was, offered a defense of multilateral cooperation and
warned against undermining that.
Germany's Angela Merkel, in an address to the forum, evoked the
two World Wars and questioned whether the world had learned from
them.
French President Emmanuel Macron opened his well-attended speech
by joking that the conference "obviously and fortunately didn't
invite anyone skeptical" about global warming.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Canada's Justin Trudeau and
Brazilian President Michel Temer have also embraced the idea of
globalization and cooperation.
Mnuchin defended Trump's agenda.
"This is about an America First agenda. But America First does
mean working with the rest of the world," Mnuchin said. "It just
means that President Trump is looking out for American workers
and American interests no different than he expects other
leaders would look out for their own."
Ross said U.S. trade actions were provoked by "inappropriate
behavior on the part of our trading counterparties".
AMERICAN JOBS
On Tuesday, the United States slapped steep import tariffs on
washing machines and solar panels, moves billed as a way to
protect American jobs. China and South Korea condemned the
tariffs, with Seoul set to complain to the World Trade
Organization over the "excessive" move.
"Many countries are very good at the rhetoric of free trade but
in fact actually practice extreme protectionism," Ross said.
The Commerce Secretary also said U.S. trade authorities are
investigating whether there is a case for taking action against
China for infringing intellectual property, calling Beijing's
2025 technology strategy a threat.
A slide in the U.S. dollar should help U.S. exporters, but
Mnuchin also added a nuanced outlook: "Longer term, the strength
of the dollar is a reflection of the strength of the U.S.
economy and the fact that it is and it continues to be the
primary currency in terms of the reserve currency."
The U.S. delegation is the largest ever to come to Davos, with
10 members of Trump's cabinet and senior White House staff,
Mnuchin said. Delegates include Jared Kushner, Trump's
son-in-law and adviser.
Mnuchin said American involvement in a new Asia-Pacific trade
pact between 11 countries was "not off the table", despite
Washington pulling out of early talks on the deal last year.
But he added, "We are fans of bilateral trading agreements."
Earlier on Tuesday, Canada's Trudeau called the new trade
agreement, expected to be signed in Chile in March, the "right
deal".
Ross said Trudeau's comments needed to be taken in the context
of the latest round of talks on NAFTA. Perhaps there was some
inclination to use that to "put pressure on the U.S. in the
NAFTA talks," Ross said.
(Reporting by Paritosh Bansal, Noah Barkin and Yara Bayoumy;
Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton in Washington, Editing
by William Maclean, Simon Robinson, Peter Graff and Chizu
Nomiyama)
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