This post provides links to a number of thought-provoking articles I have read over the past few days that you may also find of interest.

• Fred Bergsten (Foreign Affairs): The dollar and the deficits: How Washington can prevent the next crisis, November 2009. If the US is serious about recovering from the global economic crisis, it must balance the budget, stimulate private saving, and embrace a declining dollar.

• Randall Forsyth (Barron’s): Weak dollar equals strong stocks, for now, October 14, 2009. As long as there is no ready substitute for the dollar, Wall Street can celebrate the currency’s steady decline. And U.S. GDP will be boosted by a cheap greenback’s spur to exports and deterrent to imports. This cannot go on forever, however. The dollar’s fall may not have started on President Obama’s watch, but it may become his problem.

This post provides links to a number of interesting articles I have read over the past few days that you may also enjoy.

• Conor Clarke (The Atlantic): An interview with Paul Samuelson, part one, June 17, 2009.

• Mohamed El-Erian (PIMCO): Beware of the “business as usual” mindset, June 2009. We are facing a world of lower growth and accelerated country realignments. Policy experimentation will remain the norm for much longer than most expect. All of this constitutes an inherent part of the world’s bumpy journey to a new normal. It is a reality that also impacts key elements of successful investment management - in particular, asset allocation, manager selection and risk management. It calls for some critical re-tooling of mindsets, institutions and approaches.

• George Soros (Financial Times): The three steps to financial reform, June 16, 2009. While markets are imperfect,