The current world currency system is the US dollar. This means that a) most global goods (including oil) are priced in US dollars, b) most international trades are transacted in US dollars, and c) many (people, banks, nations) save in US dollars. Not surprisingly, the primary beneficiary of this arrangement is the United States, as they get to export "dollars" in exchange for real goods and services.
So, why does the rest of the world put up with such a one-sided system? And, is there a better system?
It seems to me that countries like Australia put up with this system because they need the US for protection. This essentially amounts to a protection racket being run by the US. There are many countries in a similar situation to Australia.
Other countries support this system out of pure fear, and rightly so. To date, the two countries that have tried to side-step the US dollar for international oil trade have been Iraq and Libya, and we know how that ended for them.
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