[AnthonyMouse]

The status as a reserve currency requires dollars to flow into other countries, but that doesn't mean it has to be in exchange for manufactured goods. Example: US individuals or businesses buy real estate or stakes in local businesses in foreign countries with US dollars, causing US dollars to flow into those countries. Rents collected from the properties or businesses are used to buy more properties or businesses rather than being extracted from the country.

[nemothekid]

Labor is likely the most plentiful asset any developing country has as well as it's a system that doesn't require much legal overhead. Manufacturing goods would be the easiest asset any country could produce - trying to own an asset in a foreign nation is an expensive endeavor that requires military might (the middle east probably being the most pertinent example). Trying to collect rents requires the maintenance of an international legal system that will rule fairly. I'm not saying it's impossible, but that manufacturing requires way less overhead to maintain.