Dollar's surprising strength is Asian economies' weakness

On any list of things that make little sense in these disorienting, pandemic-obsessed times, the U.S. dollar's strength deserves prominent placement.

Normally, aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate cuts of the kind we saw this month would reduce the U.S. currency's appeal, as would talk of adding $2 trillion more to Washington's debt load. You would think, too, that President Donald Trump's glacial response to coronavirus risks would have capital fleeing the world's biggest economy.