Javier Milei may have won an unexpectedly large majority in Argentina’s presidential election but the self-declared “anarcho-capitalist” faces huge obstacles to implementing his radical programme to shrink government and dollarise the economy.

Argentina’s dire state, with inflation running at 143 per cent a year, a wildly unrealistic official exchange rate and unsustainable public finances, would pose a daunting challenge for any new head of state.

When there’s no real alternative, there’s no problem, as the saying goes. And that may be the logic of Argentina voters on Sunday who rejected the catastrophe of Peronist rule in favor of impulsive and charismatic outsider Javier Milei, who promised what for Argentina is the radical change of free-market economics.

The U.S. dollar has been in quick decline over the past several months, one of several indicators raising fears that the economy could be headed for a recession.

Since a recent peak in early November, the greenback has fallen by 7.4%, according to the nominal broad U.S. dollar index. The falling dollar comes after a yearlong period of the Federal Reserve hiking interest rates in response to the country’s rip-roaring inflation.

On an October morning 25 years ago, MarketWatch started providing real-time news and market data to the general public on the internet. Individuals were fleeing their stockbrokers for new online platforms, like E-Trade and Charles Schwab, and hungry for financial data and information that did not cost upwards of $10,000 annually to access. 

The MarketWatch newsroom was built with these readers’ needs in mind and for the next 25 years we provided them unbiased coverage to help them make sense of financial markets and their personal financial decisions. 

A dollar can’t buy you as much at the grocery store as it did last year—unless that grocery store is in another country. The greenback’s strength relative to other currencies is rapidly increasing and sending ripples through the global economy. Though not unprecedented, it’s been decades since the world has seen a dollar this strong.

Why is this happening now?

It’s impossible to pinpoint all the reasons for the strong dollar, but two factors stand out.

Crypto might have captured the imaginations of retail investors, venture capitalists, and start-up founders, but for now, the largest financial institutions are giving it a pass.

A report released Friday by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision found that the largest banks’ crypto exposure was worth only about 9.4 billion euros ($9.2 billion) or about 0.01% of the total exposures that banks must account for when determining capital requirements. Just two banks, which the report didn’t identify, made up 40% of the total.

China's yuan has hit fresh record lows against the surging US dollar.

The internationally-traded yuan fell to its lowest level since data first became available in 2011.

China's domestic currency also reached its weakest point since the 2008 global financial crisis.

It comes as the dollar continues to rise in value against other major currencies, after the US central bank increased interest rates again earlier this month.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, major stock market indexes across Asia fell sharply.

The British pound hit an all-time low against the U.S. dollar on Monday, reflecting a highly negative review of the new government’s plan for big tax cuts and borrowing and adding to the anxiety of consumers already preparing for soaring energy bills this winter.

The sharp drop in the value of the pound comes as the British government grapples with soaring public debt and a cost-of-living crisis, amid deteriorating investor confidence. It also raised the prospect that Britain’s central bank may intervene in currency markets to shore up the pound.

The British pound hit its lowest-ever level against the U.S. dollar Monday, dropping heavily after the U.K. government announced a series of tax cuts on Friday, before later paring losses.

The currency touched $1.0349 during Asian trading hours Monday, breaking through its previous record low in 1985. The pound was recently trading at $1.0776.

The currency sold off dramatically after U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng unveiled a massive tax-cutting package Friday, which will be paired with subsidies for households and businesses.