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De-Dollarization: Countries Seeking Alternatives to the U.S. Dollar

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De-Dollarization: More Countries Seek Alternatives to the U.S. Dollar

De-Dollarization: Countries Seeking Alternatives to U.S. Dollar

This was originally posted onย Elements. Sign up to theย free mailing listย to get beautiful visualizations on natural resource megatrends in your email every week.

The U.S. dollar has dominated global trade and capital flows over many decades.

However, many nations are looking for alternatives to the greenback to reduce their dependence on the United States.

This graphic catalogs the rise of the U.S. dollar as the dominant international reserve currency, and the recent efforts by various nations to de-dollarize and reduce their dependence on the U.S. financial system.

The Dollar Dominance

The United States became, almost overnight, the leading financial power after World War I. The country entered the war only in 1917 and emerged far stronger than its European counterparts.

As a result, the dollar began to displace the pound sterling as the international reserve currency and the U.S. also became a significant recipient of wartime gold inflows.

The dollar then gained a greater role in 1944, when 44 countries signed theย Bretton Woods Agreement, creating a collective international currency exchange regime pegged to the U.S. dollar which was, in turn, pegged to the price of gold.

By the late 1960s, European and Japanese exports became more competitive with U.S. exports. There was a large supply of dollars around the world, making it difficult to back dollars with gold. President Nixon ceased the direct convertibility of U.S. dollars toย goldย in 1971. This ended both the gold standard and the limit on the amount of currency that could be printed.

Although it has remained the international reserve currency, the U.S. dollar has increasingly lost itsย purchasing powerย since then.

Russia and Chinaโ€™s Steps Towards De-Dollarization

Concerned about Americaโ€™s dominance over the global financial system and the countryโ€™s ability toย โ€˜weaponizeโ€™ย it, other nations have been testing alternatives to reduce the dollarโ€™s hegemony.

As the United States and other Western nations imposed economic sanctions against Russia in response to itsย invasion of Ukraine, Moscow and the Chinese government have beenย teaming upย to reduce reliance on the dollar and to establish cooperation between their financial systems.

Since the invasion in 2022, the ruble-yuan trade has increased eighty-fold. Russia and Iran are also working together to launch a cryptocurrency backed by gold,ย accordingย to Russian news agency Vedmosti.

In addition, central banks (especially Russiaโ€™s and Chinaโ€™s) haveย bought goldย at the fastest pace since 1967 as countries move to diversify their reserves away from the dollar.

How Other Countries are Reducing Dollar Dependence

De-dollarization itโ€™s a theme in other parts of the world:

  • In recent months, Brazil and Argentina have discussed the creation of a common currency for the two largest economies in South America.
  • In a conference in Singapore in January, multiple former Southeast Asian officialsย spokeย about de-dollarization efforts underway.
  • The UAE and India are in talks to use rupees toย tradeย non-oil commodities in a shift away from the dollar, according to Reuters.
  • For the first time in 48 years, Saudi Arabia said that the oil-rich nation isย openย to trading in currencies besides the U.S. dollar.

Despite these movements, few expect to see the end of the dollarโ€™s global sovereign status anytime soon. Currently, central banks still hold aboutย 60%ย of their foreign exchange reserves in dollars.

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Urbanization

Ranked: The Cities with the Most Skyscrapers in 2023

We rank the world’s leading cities with the most skyscrapers, highlighting China’s remarkable dominance in building vertically.

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Ranked: The Cities with the Most Skyscrapers in 2023

When it comes to soaring skylines and architectural marvels, no country has embraced the vertical revolution quite like China.

In this graphic, which uses data from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), we reveal the 25 cities with the most skyscrapers and supertall buildings globally.

Unsurprisingly, China’s cities dominate the list, solidifying the country’s reputation as a global powerhouse of tall buildings.

The 25 Top Cities by Skyscraper Count

Topping the charts is Hong Kong, with an impressive 657 skyscrapers, including six supertalls (buildings over 300 meters tall).

RankCityCountrySkyscrapers (>150m)Supertalls (>300m)
1Hong Kong๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China6576
2Shenzhen๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China51316
3New York City๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ United States42116
4Dubai๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡ช United Arab Emirates39528
5Guangzhou๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China25411
6Shanghai๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China2505
7Kuala Lumpur๐Ÿ‡ฒ๐Ÿ‡พ Malaysia2115
8Chongqing๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China2055
9Tokyo๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ต Japan2000
10Wuhan๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China1835
11Chicago๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ United States1787
12Jakarta๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ฉ Indonesia1601
13Chengdu๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China1500
14Bangkok๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ญ Thailand1333
15Shenyang๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China1293
16Singapore๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ฌ Singapore1280
17Nanning๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China1226
18Mumbai๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ณ India1140
19Tianjin๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China1093
20Nanjing๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China1087
21Toronto๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ฆ Canada1060
22Busan๐Ÿ‡ฐ๐Ÿ‡ท South Korea1064
23Seoul๐Ÿ‡ฐ๐Ÿ‡ท South Korea1042
24Changsha๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China975
25Melbourne๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ Australia941

Hong Kong, along with Shenzhen (#2), and Guangzhou (#5) are part of the burgeoning megacity known as the Pearl River Delta, which is home to over 1,500 skyscrapers. This is even more impressive when considering that Shenzhen was a small fishing village until the 1970s.

New York City secures the third position on the list, boasting an impressive tally of 421 skyscrapers. Although it may have relinquished its title to Chinese cities, the city’s skyline endures as a globally renowned symbol, prominently featuring the iconic Empire State Building. Notably, while the Empire State Building enjoys widespread familiarity, it no longer ranks among the world’s 50 tallest structures.

Rounding out the top five is Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, which grabs the fourth position with 395 skyscrapers, a staggering 28 of which are supertalls. This desert oasis has become synonymous with grandiose architecture and record-breaking structures, exemplified by the Burj Khalifa, which is the world’s current tallest building at 828 meters (2,715 ft).

China’s Numbers in Context

Looking at this data from another perspective, China actually has more skyscrapers on this list than the rest of the world combined.

CountryCities in Top 25SkyscrapersSupertalls
๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ China12277772
๐ŸŒ Rest of World13235067

China’s rapid urbanization, economic growth, and ambitious construction projects have fueled this impressive feat. There’s no doubt that the country’s relentless pursuit of vertical development, coupled with its booming population and thriving cities, has positioned China as the unrivaled leader in the global skyscraper race.

The Future of the Global Skyline

As the world continues to reach new heights in architectural marvels, there are even more supertall skyscrapers in the pipeline that will reshape skylines across the globe.

From the soaring Jeddah Tower in Saudi Arabia, poised to surpass the Burj Khalifa as the world’s tallest building, to the remarkable Merdeka 118 in Kuala Lumpur, which is set to claim the title of the world’s second-tallest structure when it opens in June 2023, these projects will captivate city dwellers for years to come.

Even as these new monumental buildings rise, China’s prominence in the world of skyscrapersโ€”with three cities in the top five globallyโ€”is likely to remain unchallenged.

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