"Bless me, curse meFor better or worsemy fallopian fall into matter..."After making careful preparations to ensure himself a proper reincarnation, the dying Aleister Crowley flubs one syllable of the magickal incantation and comes back as... Elmer Fudd.

Scholars and practitioners from the fields of economics, political science, sociology, and government discuss the nature and importance of debt in the international system and question whether international debt is a necessary element of international development or a potential root of international economic collapse (and of the demise of the dollar as denominator of the monetary realm). They then turn specifically to the impact of external debt on developing countries, exploring the poten...

Why the current Bretton Woods-like international financial system, featuring large current account deficits in the center country, the United States, and massive reserve accumulation by the periphery, is not sustainable.In Global Imbalances and the Lessons of Bretton Woods, Barry Eichengreen takes issue with the argument that today's international financial system is largely analogous to the Bretton Woods System of the period 1958 to 1973. Then, as now, it...

A clear, authoritative guide to the crisis of 2008, its continuing repercussions, and the needed reforms ahead.The U.S. economy lost the first decade of the twenty-first century to an ill-conceived boom and subsequent bust. It is in danger of losing another decade to the stagnation of an incomplete recovery. How did this happen? Read this lucid explanation of the origins and long-term effects of the recent financial crisis, drawn in historical and comparative persp...

Since attaining independence in 1965 Singapore has experienced exceptionally rapid growth, low inflation, and a healthy balance of payments. This paper reviews Singapore's economic development from a long-term perspective and examines some of the factors that have contributed to the sustained rapid growth

In its more than 65 years of existence, the International Monetary Fund has evolved from a small, obscure international agency, with new and uncertain responsibilities, into a powerful institution that today has assumed center stage in the international monetary system. It is a remarkable story of how an institution has developed and adapted itself to an evolving world and a changing membership in ways that perhaps no other international agency has been forced or able to do.The thi...

A comprehensive analysis of the politics surrounding exchange rate policies in the global economy—with in-depth case studies.The exchange rate is the most important price in any nation's economy, and a central factor in the global economy. Despite the critical role of exchange rate policy, there are few definitive explanations of why governments choose the currency policies they do. In Currency Politics, Jeffrey Frieden combines narrative and statistical in...

C. Eugene Steuerle, one of the country's most influential economists, offers an insider's look at tax policy based on a quarter century of working with officials of all political stripes. Steuerle outlines the principles of taxation and the early postwar period before proceeding to the tax policy battles that began with the Reagan revolution and continue today. Those expecting a simple story of triumph and defeat may be surprised. Rather than moving toward consensus and progress, tax polic...

In Dance of the Trillions, David Lubin tells the story of what makes money flow from high-income countries to lower-income ones; what makes it flow out again; and how developing countries have sought protection against the volatility of international capital flows. The book traces an arc from the 1970s, when developing countries first gained access to international financial markets, to the present day.Underlying this story is a discussion of how the relationship between d...

Global Economic Prospects 2010: Crisis, Finance and Growth presents the World Bank's latest short-term forecasts. In addition, the report presents evidence that the financial boom played a critical role in the growth boom experienced by developing countries between 2003 and 2007, but that tighter conditions in the future are expected to result in weaker growth over the next 5 to 10 years.The report warns that while the worst of the financial crisis may be over, the global recovery is fra...

This fascinating volume offers a comprehensive synthesis of the events, causes and outcomes of the major financial crises from 1929 to the present day. Beginning with an overview of the global financial system, Sara Hsu presents both theoretical and empirical evidence to explain the roots of financial crises and financial instability in general. She then provides a thorough breakdown of a number of major crises of the past century, both in the United States and around the world.Hsu...

The October 2010 Regional Economic Outlook features: (i) an overview of economic developments and prospects in sub-Saharan Africa; (ii) an analytical assessment of how monetary policy changes are transmitted through the region's economies; and (iii) a study of why growth rates in the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) have lagged behind other parts of sub-Saharan Africa. The overview highlights the broad-based economic recovery that is now under way in sub-Saharan Africa and ...