Nation-state controls over capital inflows and outflows are not necessarily a bad idea, and were an alternative system proposed in the 1970s. Of course, the US

Nation-state controls over capital inflows and outflows are not necessarily a bad idea, and were an alternative system proposed in the 1970s. Of course, the USA instead championed neoliberal trade policies that largely eliminated such controls, relying instead on petrodollar recycling to manage the balance-of-payments issues. It's worth taking a look at conditions in 1978 for context: https://www.nytimes.com/1978/04/30/archives/the-nation-the-idea-wont-float-working-within-the-system.html https://www.nytimes.com/1978/04/30/archives/the-nation-the-i... > "It is not just the capital outflow from the United States that has so hurt the dollar. Once, American capital outflow abroad was largely offSet by a surplus in trade. But the United States, has now slipped into a deficit in trade as well as payments, both because of its huge oil bills ($48 billion last year alone) and a weakening of exports, as other countries have grown more slowly and so have been importing less..." > "Furthermore, capital flows are now even more important than trade flows. The meeting of OPEC in Saudi Arabia that starts Saturday, aimed at revaluing the oil‐producing countries’ dollar holdings, could have an even bigger impact on the dollar than the oil trade itself. Government holdings of the oil exporting countries total over $60 billion in monetary rerserves. Private holdings are unknown. Despite all the dollars that have flowed out, the United States is still trying to play the role of banker to the world, still providing the key currency for the world monetary system..." The complexities of petrodollar recycling - weapons deals, aid programs, secretive Wall Street foreign investment funds, etc. - are generally not a subject of discussion in the western corporate media, but here's a good overview from 1985: "Petro-Dollar Recycling: Imports, Arms, Investment and Aid" (1985), Gerner https://sci-hub.se/10.2307/41857746 https://sci-hub.se/10.2307/41857746 It's worth noting also that current USA-Russia tensions really began in 2003 when Putin largely rejected membership in the petrodollar recycling system, and similar issues arose with Venezuela and later, Libya. Chinese oil imports are on the order of $175 billion per year, so they're apparently facing the same problem the US did in the 1970s. However, they're also building out renewable capacity faster than any other nation, which is the best way to escape fossil fuel dependency.