Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega warned Sunday that Brazil could not afford to be left behind in a global game of currency manipulation for competitive advantage.
"The whole world is fighting for markets out there, and one way to do that is with currency manipulation, by depreciating currency. We cannot be left behind in this game," he said in an interview with O Estado de Sao Paulo.
The Brazilian real this week rose to 1.53 to the dollar, its highest level in the 12 years since it adopted a free exchange system in January 1999.
Brazil has accused the United States and China of artificially lowering the value of their currencies, driving up the value of the real.
The stronger real undercuts the competiveness of Brazilian exports while fuelling imports. In response, the government plans to unveil a policy this week aimed at stimulating the country's industrial sector.
Mantega promised "rigorous regulation" of imports entering the country at artificially low prices, and charged that many countries with which Brazil has anti-dumping agreements were routing their exports through third countries.
He said while a sharp decline in the value of the dollar against the real would help curb inflation in Brazil, "it would finish off the national industry."
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