On 22 September 1985, at the Plaza Hotel in New York, the finance ministers and central bank governors of France, West Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States (G5) adopt the Plaza Accord — the joint announcement calling for orderly appreciation of non-dollar currencies against the US dollar.

The ministers agree that exchange rates should better reflect economic fundamentals and that “some further orderly appreciation of the main non-dollar currencies against the dollar is desirable”; they stand ready to cooperate more closely in currency markets. The dollar had risen about 50% from 1980 to 1985.

In subsequent months the dollar fell sharply; the 1987 Louvre Accord sought to halt the decline. The impact on the US–Japan trade deficit remained limited; some commentators link the strong yen to Japan’s later asset bubble.

The announcement text includes country-specific policy commitments.

For the international monetary system, 22 September 1985 marks the Plaza meeting.

The document is available in G7 / Thatcher Foundation archives.

The Plaza Accord of 22 September 1985 remains the milestone of coordinated G5 intervention on the dollar.

Image: New York / Plaza; Wikimedia Commons. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: Plaza Accord. Treaty text: G7 Information Centre — Plaza Accord.