<p>Like all entities except the US government: they trade for it on the currency exchange market.</p>
<p>There are special cases when the US government gives aid without asking anything in return.</p>
<p>A government could also get a dollar loan, but would eventually have to repay it with dollars, so this merely delays the problem.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T12:56:34.027Z
@S.IasonKoutsoulis The answer *is* focused on governments, not banks. (2) seems to be the answer of another question.
Giskard
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T13:00:43.130Z
@S.IasonKoutsoulis Please feel free to post an alternate answer :)
Giskard
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T13:07:55.027Z
But consider an impoverished government whose currency isn't powerful enough. Are you saying the only way for this government to raise dollars is to further depreciate its currency by trying to buy on the international market? What if nobody wants to trade their currency?
Junk
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T13:10:38.243Z
Yes, that is what I am saying. There are almost no cases where nobody wants to buy a country's currency, nor the stuff that could be bought with said currency. In a country where the government owns mines, farms or production the government could skip the the exchange market and sell goods directly for dollars.
Giskard
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T13:16:00.607Z
@Junk It occurs to me that I have so far not mentioned loans. Of course a country could get a dollar loan, but it would eventually have to be repayed with dollars, which have to be raised in the ways mentioned above.
Giskard
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T13:48:54.913Z
@Junk Then they have to sell stuff to get dollars, don't they?
Criticize SE actions means ban
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T12:32:35.253Z
2021-08-25T13:16:48.363Z
2021-08-25T13:16:48.363Z
Giskard
<p>So I am giving an answer to my own question because so far I have received only limited responses. I see the following methods as possible, I would like people to add other methods as well.</p>
<ol>
<li>Owning US treasuries or other dollar denominated bonds.</li>
<li>Investing in companies via a sovereign fund.</li>
<li>@Giskard and @user253751 list government owned enterprises selling goods.</li>
<li>Excise/custom duties on exports/imports by commercial enterprises.</li>
<li>Selling domestic currency to purchase USD, which runs the risk of  currency depreciation.</li>
</ol>
<p>I should edit the question to say I want methods that don't add further debt to the government.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T16:52:46.803Z
to clarify #3, the government doesn't have to sell goods, it can incentivize businesses to sell goods overseas to create a currency exchange market. I meant that *someone* would sell goods, not specifically the government.
Criticize SE actions means ban
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-30T01:47:37.887Z
How does your 1. buying Treasuries raise USD? You need USD to buy them.
dm63
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-09-02T20:47:45.387Z
@Junk Unless they are referring to interest earnings, this should be amended to 'selling US-denominated securities' with the assumption that the sovereign already owns such assets, which would rather technically be one way for a sovereign to get US dollars.
Cola
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T15:43:58.383Z
2021-09-03T18:23:09.967Z
2021-09-03T18:23:09.967Z
Junk
<ol>
<li><p>if you are from country other than US, and you imported goods, you should pay the money in dollars (there will be other currencies which they accept) to the exporter, you can't pay them in your own currency.</p>
</li>
<li><p>Through Foreign Direct Investment.</p>
</li>
<li><p>Through NRI (Non Resident India) bonds, if you are from India, similar bonds will be there for other countries.</p>
</li>
<li><p>Currency manipulation (making their domestic currency weak by buying dollars) by export based countries (Ex-China), it's intention is not to acquire dollars but during this process they indirectly get dollars.</p>
</li>
<li><p>Currency Swap, nowadays many countries are doing.</p>
</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-28T16:31:58.807Z
2021-08-28T16:31:58.807Z
Chandan Pulavarthi
<p>The principal method for governments to raise dollars is for their domestic businesses to produce something that can be sold for dollars in the marketplace.  Oil is one obvious example , but it could be general goods.  Eg China exports a variety of goods to the US, resulting in the accumulation by their central bank of about 1 trillion US dollars at the last count.  Purely financial methods such as printing your own currency and purchasing dollars are not achieving much as they commonly result in depreciation of your own currency and domestic inflation.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-25T23:12:36.453Z
2021-08-25T23:12:36.453Z
dm63
<p>I want to understand how non-US governments earn dollars. I tried googling for it but there seems to be no information on the internet. Your help is much appreciated.</p>
<p>I am looking for methods that don't create additional debt to the government.</p>

<currency><international-economics><nonexpert>
How do non-US governments raise dollars?
Junk
# How do non-US governments raise dollars?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-08-25)

I want to understand how non-US governments earn dollars. I tried googling for it but there seems to be no information on the internet. Your help is much appreciated.

I am looking for methods that don't create additional debt to the government.

**Tags:** currency, international-economics, nonexpert


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## 4 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2021-08-25. Score: 4

Like all entities except the US government: they trade for it on the currency exchange market.

There are special cases when the US government gives aid without asking anything in return.

A government could also get a dollar loan, but would eventually have to repay it with dollars, so this merely delays the problem.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: @S.IasonKoutsoulis The answer *is* focused on governments, not banks. (2) seems to be the answer of another question.  
> **username_1**: @S.IasonKoutsoulis Please feel free to post an alternate answer :)  
> **username_0**: But consider an impoverished government whose currency isn't powerful enough. Are you saying the only way for this government to raise dollars is to further depreciate its currency by trying to buy on the international market? What if nobody wants to trade their currency?  
> **username_1**: Yes, that is what I am saying. There are almost no cases where nobody wants to buy a country's currency, nor the stuff that could be bought with said currency. In a country where the government owns mines, farms or production the government could skip the the exchange market and sell goods directly for dollars.  
> **username_1**: @username_0 It occurs to me that I have so far not mentioned loans. Of course a country could get a dollar loan, but it would eventually have to be repayed with dollars, which have to be raised in the ways mentioned above.  
> **username_2**: @username_0 Then they have to sell stuff to get dollars, don't they?  

---

### Answer by username_0 on 2021-08-25. Score: 2

So I am giving an answer to my own question because so far I have received only limited responses. I see the following methods as possible, I would like people to add other methods as well.

1. Owning US treasuries or other dollar denominated bonds.
2. Investing in companies via a sovereign fund.
3. @username_1 and @user253751 list government owned enterprises selling goods.
4. Excise/custom duties on exports/imports by commercial enterprises.
5. Selling domestic currency to purchase USD, which runs the risk of currency depreciation.

I should edit the question to say I want methods that don't add further debt to the government.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: to clarify #3, the government doesn't have to sell goods, it can incentivize businesses to sell goods overseas to create a currency exchange market. I meant that *someone* would sell goods, not specifically the government.  
> **username_3**: How does your 1. buying Treasuries raise USD? You need USD to buy them.  
> **username_4**: @username_0 Unless they are referring to interest earnings, this should be amended to 'selling US-denominated securities' with the assumption that the sovereign already owns such assets, which would rather technically be one way for a sovereign to get US dollars.  

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### Answer by username_5 on 2021-08-28. Score: 1

1. if you are from country other than US, and you imported goods, you should pay the money in dollars (there will be other currencies which they accept) to the exporter, you can't pay them in your own currency.
2. Through Foreign Direct Investment.
3. Through NRI (Non Resident India) bonds, if you are from India, similar bonds will be there for other countries.
4. Currency manipulation (making their domestic currency weak by buying dollars) by export based countries (Ex-China), it's intention is not to acquire dollars but during this process they indirectly get dollars.
5. Currency Swap, nowadays many countries are doing.


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### Answer by username_3 on 2021-08-25. Score: 0

The principal method for governments to raise dollars is for their domestic businesses to produce something that can be sold for dollars in the marketplace. Oil is one obvious example , but it could be general goods. Eg China exports a variety of goods to the US, resulting in the accumulation by their central bank of about 1 trillion US dollars at the last count. Purely financial methods such as printing your own currency and purchasing dollars are not achieving much as they commonly result in depreciation of your own currency and domestic inflation.


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