White House Admits "Strong Dollar Is Headwind For Growth" As Greenback Surges At Fastest Pace In 34 Years

Forget 2013's "taper tantrum", FX markets are roiling over a full-blown "rate-hike-rage" as the USD Index surges to a new 12 year high, rising 23% in the last 8 months - the fastest surge since 1981. Not only is this dramaticaly bad for the US equity earnings picture but the carnage being unleashed across developed and emerging market currencies is almost unprecedented. Despite reassurance from The Fed that a strengthening dollar is positive for US jobs, The White House has now issued a statement that a "strengthening USD is a headwind for US growth."

The USD Index has risen at the fastest pace in 34 years...

Despite previous reassurances from Bullard, Fisher et al. [8]

Sharp gains in the U.S. dollar are good for the U.S. labor market, a top Federal Reserve official said on Friday, downplaying a crescendo of complaints from top executives over the dent to their profits.

"CEOs that have international operations complain about it," Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher told Reuters in an interview. "I hear from every one of them - it offsets their powerful earnings here domestically."

Fisher takes those complaints with a grain of salt.

"It brings to my mind the vision of Edward Munch’s painting 'The Scream'," he said, adding, "It's not the end of the world."

Fisher, who plans to retire from his post in March, holds views that are often far from those at the Fed's core. Still, the former hedge-fund manager says he feels his views are heard at the policy-setting table.

"The more income and investment flows we get, the better it is for our companies big and small to go out and hire American workers," Fisher said. "And it does help on the consumption side, if, for example, oil is denominated in dollars, it just helps us have cheaper goods."