Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a former International Monetary Fund chief, said Thursday that the role of the U.S. dollar as the world’s key currency will likely stay strong regardless of possible changes in U.S. monetary policy.

The greenback has been under downward pressure as the U.S. Federal Reserve has implemented quantitative easing steps by massively purchasing bonds. Following the global financial crisis, some raised questions about the role of the dollar as the key currency.

Strauss-Kahn said in a forum held in Seoul that the Fed’s possible monetary stimulus tapering would cause emerging countries to face problems in foreign exchange rates that could trigger currency tension.

He said that it would not be easy for many countries to reinforce some line of defense as they did undergo jitters over currency a few years ago.

Strauss-Kahn said that changes in U.S. monetary policy are not likely to greatly affect the role of the dollar down the road, given that concerns over the collapse of the dollar have not be realized.

“In the coming years, I do believe that the role of the dollar will still remain the same (regardless of tapering),” Strauss-Kahn noted.

He said that the importance of the dollar in terms of global trade and international finance “is going to stay as strong as it is today.”

The former IMF managing director cast a somewhat pessimistic view about the global economic outlook, saying that the world economy may be in the slow growth trend amid a lack of leadership and cooperation at the global stage. (Yonhap News)