FLOATING THE DOLLAR: FACTS AND FICTION.

The article focuses on the decision of the Australian government under the administration of former Prime Minister Bob Hawke to float the dollar in 1983. It offers an overview of the evolution of the exchange rate and the policy attitude of the Treasury since the mid-1960s. It also describes the international monetary situation in 1983 which was characterized by declining U.S. inflation rate increasing Australian inflation rate, and the role of politician Paul Keating in the float adoption.