The Political Economy of Inflation and Stabilization in Middle-income Countries

The Political Economy of Inflation and Stabilization in Middle-income Countries PDF Author: Stephan Haggard
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Developing countries
Languages : en
Pages : 69

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Book Description
Macroeconomic stability is most precarious, and stabilization most likely to be delayed, where the party system is fragmented or polarized.

The Political Economy of Inflation and Stabilization in Middle-income Countries

The Political Economy of Inflation and Stabilization in Middle-income Countries PDF Author: Stephan Haggard
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN:
Category : Developing countries
Languages : en
Pages : 69

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Book Description
Macroeconomic stability is most precarious, and stabilization most likely to be delayed, where the party system is fragmented or polarized.

The Politics of Inflation and Economic Stagnation

The Politics of Inflation and Economic Stagnation PDF Author: Leon Lindberg
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 9780815723677
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 646

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Book Description
The inflation of the 1970s represented the greatest peacetime disruption of the Western economies since the Depression. Even as inflation receded, the recession in its wake brought more joblessness than at any time since the 1930s. The governments of industrialized nations found that the economic policies they had developed since World War II no longer assured price stability or high employment. What are the lessons of over a decade of economic difficulty? In this conference volume, which focuses on aspects of the crisis that economists often presuppose to be beyond control, the authors analyze the political and social underpinning of inflation and recession. Part 1 places the economic problems of the 1970s in the historical context of postwar development and then compares economic and political science analyses of inflation. Part 2 examines how rivalries between social groups affect inflationary processes. One chapter draws on the history of Latin American inflation to suggest the conflicts in play. Two others weigh the role of labor and industry in the formation of economic policy. And another shows how rivalry between countries, like rivalry between classes at home, permitted inflation to rise. The chapters in part 3 contest the claim that big government or big labor causes inflation. Two studies emphasize that a high degree of public expenditure does not itself lead to inflation. Further contributions explore the role of central banks and subject such concepts as the political business cycle to critical analysis. Part 4 comprises case studies about macroeconomic policymaking in four nations: Italy, Germany, Japan, and Sweden. The studies reveal what institutional attributes rendered those countries resistant to inflation or vulnerable to economic setback. In the last part, the editors pull together the findings and lay out the contemporary political feasibility of alternative approaches to macroeconomic management.

Political Business Cycles

Political Business Cycles PDF Author: Thomas D. Willett
Publisher: Duke University Press
ISBN: 9780822308423
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 554

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Book Description
"A Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy book." Includes bibliographies and index.

Hyperinflation and Stabilization in Postsocialist Economies

Hyperinflation and Stabilization in Postsocialist Economies PDF Author: G.W Kolodko
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 940113894X
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
One would think states and peoples have had so many bad experiences with inflation that politicians at the helm of these states would do everything within their power to avoid inflation and, in particular, its very intensive shape, i. e. hyperinflation. However, this has not been the case. After the big inflations of the twenties and the post-war inflations of the fourties, we still witness intensive, economically, socially and politically extremely painful inflationary processes. And the eighties will be particularly engraved in history as a period in which the inflation has assumed an exceptionally dynamic character with respect to some countries. This regards, in the first place, Latin America, but not exclusively. Not without reason -as will be of particular intensity has also affected shown in this book -inflation countries which, according to the passed economic doctrine, were supposed to be completely immune from this economic illness. Most generally, the inflation can be assumed to be a uniform phenomenon which, in each case, can be described by a single, universal definition, while being divided into a number of forms and types distinguishable according to their original and secondary sources, their mechanisms, the ways of their manifestation as well as to their effects and the methods of counteracting them.

The Political Economy of Democratic Transitions

The Political Economy of Democratic Transitions PDF Author: Stephan Haggard
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780691029740
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 391

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Book Description
Since the 1970s there has been a widespread movement from authoritarian to democratic rule among developing countries, often occuring against a backdrop of severe economic crises and the adoption of market-oriented reforms. This book analyzes this relationship, addressing a variety of questions.

Fragile Coalitions

Fragile Coalitions PDF Author: Joan M. Nelson
Publisher: Transaction Publishers
ISBN: 9781412823852
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
"Economic reform by Third World governments is usually portrayed as the product of outside pressure, especially from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. This welcome collection provides an important counter-perspective by putting domestic politics at center stage. Miles Kahler demonstrates that international institutions only rarely play an important role."--Orbis' "Joan Nelson and her collaborators have performed a valuable service for those concerned about the politics of reform by bringing together a series of informed and insightful essays that address clearly and concisely the difficult political dilemmas of economic adjustment."--Merilee S. Grindle,Economic Development and Cultural Change

The Political Economy of the Asian Financial Crisis

The Political Economy of the Asian Financial Crisis PDF Author: Stephan Haggard
Publisher: Peterson Institute
ISBN: 9780881322835
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 310

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Book Description
This study not only examines the countries most severely affected by the Asian financial crisis, but also draws lessons from those whose economies escaped the worst problems. The author focuses on the political economy of the crisis, emphasizing long-standing problems and crisis management tactics.

The Political Economy of Inflation

The Political Economy of Inflation PDF Author: Fred Hirsch
Publisher: Cambridge, Mass. : Harvard University Press
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 328

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Book Description


Monetary Policy and Macroeconomic Stabilization

Monetary Policy and Macroeconomic Stabilization PDF Author: Ole Roste
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351504878
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 214

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Book Description
As a fundamental review and critique of activist economic policies, this book is a unique contribution to classical political economy. "Monetary Policy and Macroeconomic Stabilization" is about macroeconomic stabilization policy, with emphasis on the value of a distinct national monetary policy to growth. Ole Bjorn Roste's argument is for public officials to restrain themselves in the pursuit of policy. As the author notes: when you know less, you should do less.The history of modern macroeconomics started in 1936 with the publication of Keynes' "General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money". The problems of the Great depression of the 1930s paved the way for a change of focus, from the long run to economic fluctuations in the short run, and from nominal to real variables, such as unemployment and aggregate output.Keynes offered clear policy implications in tune with the times. Because economic adjustment was slow, waiting for the economy to recover by itself was irresponsible. Particularly fiscal policy was essential to return to high employment. Monetary policy could affect aggregate demand through Interest rates, but was less important. Roste discusses the role of monetary policy, starting out with the implications of the theory of optimum currency areas (OCAs). This is followed by estimates of the output loss associated with disinflation policy (the sacrifice ratio) for six OECD economies. Further, Roste models the dynamic adjustment to negative, local labor-market shocks, with particular relevance to Scandinavia, in a final section.The idea that governments should pursue stabilizing fiscal or monetary policies with regard to real variables is often taken for granted by the public, if not by economists. Among the reasons for skepticism, is the presence of differing views on how economies really work, that the state of a given economy becomes known only after a time lag, and that economic agents react to policy and expectations of policy. For these reasons, the effects of policy are generally uncertain. This book explains why the role of history is critical to the study of macroeconomics.p>

Beyond Inflation Targeting

Beyond Inflation Targeting PDF Author: Gerald A. Epstein
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1849801983
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 333

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Book Description
Inflation targeting (IT) has become the sacred cow of central banking. But its suitability to developing nations remains contested. The contributors to this volume perform the valuable service of sketching out plausible, more development-friendly alternatives. They are to be commended in particular for avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach and paying close attention to the needs of specific countries. Their proposals range from relatively minor tinkering in IT to comprehensive overhaul. A common theme is the central role of the real exchange rate, which the central banks ignore at their economies peril. Dani Rodrik, Harvard University, US As the world economy is devastated by a virulent financial crisis and jobs are lost in scores, central bankers are increasingly questioned as to why they have failed to sustain stability and growth even though they told us all along that conquering inflation would be necessary and sufficient to do so while hoping to get a pat on the back for achieving a degree of price stability unprecedented in recent times. This book provides a lot of food for thought on why. It is a powerful critique of the orthodox obsession with inflation in neglect of the two deepseated problems of the unbridled market economy financial instability and unemployment. It is a must for all policy makers, notably in the developing world, and for the mainstream. Yilmaz Akyuz, formerly of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Geneva, Switzerland This collective volume makes a compelling case for balancing the developmental and stabilization functions of central banks. In particular, the authors emphasize that, as practiced in many successful developing countries, competitive real exchange rates can be good for growth and employment generation, and should thus be a specific focus of central bank actions. The book is a must read for those looking for a more balanced framework for central bank policies. José Antonio Ocampo, Columbia University, US and former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations for Economic and Social Affairs and Finance Minister of Colombia This book, written by an international team of economists, develops concrete, country specific alternatives to inflation targeting, the dominant policy framework of central bank policy that focuses on keeping inflation in the low single digits to the virtual exclusion of other key goals such as employment creation, poverty reduction and sustainable development. The book includes thematic chapters, including analyses of class attitudes toward inflation and unemployment and the gender impacts of restrictive monetary policy. Other chapters propose improved monetary frameworks for Argentina, Brazil, India, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa, Turkey, and Vietnam. Policy frameworks that are explored include employment targeting, and targeting a stable and competitive real exchange rate. The authors also show that to reach a larger number of targets, including higher employment and stable inflation, central banks must use a larger number of instruments, including capital management techniques. This volume offers concrete, socially valuable alternatives that economists, policy makers, students and interested laypeople should consider before adopting one size fits all, often inadequate, policies that have become a virtual policy making fad.