A lack of confidence in monetary institutions after the recent financial crash has led to a resurgence of public debate on the topic of monetary reform, reaching a level of political prominence unprecedented since the period after the Great Depression. Whether privatizing money with Bitcoin, regionalizing it with regional currencies, or turning it into a state monopoly with either sovereign money or 'Modern Monetary Theory, the only economic utopians able to draw public attention in our post-crash world seem to be monetary reformers. Weber provides the first proper economic analysis of these modern monetary reform proposals, exposing their flaws and fallacies through critical examination. From academics studying the political economy of finance to economic sociologists studying financial institutions, this book will appeal to scholars and students interested in monetary reform proposals and the viability of alternative currency systems, and more broadly, readers seeking a contemporary
If treated as a single economy, the European Union is the largest in the world, with an estimated GDP of over 14 trillion euros. Despite its size, European economic policy has often lagged behind the rest of the world in its ability to generate growth and innovation. Much of the European economic research itself often trails behind that of the USA, which sets much of the agenda in mainstream economics. This book, also available as open access, bridges the gap between economic research and policymaking by presenting overviews of twelve key areas for future economic policy and research. Written for the economists and policymakers working within European institutions, it uses comprehensive surveys by Europe's leading scholars in economics and European policy to demonstrate how economic research can contribute to good policy decisions, and vice versa, demonstrating how economics research can be motivated and made relevant by hot policy questions. This title is available as Open Access on C
This edited volume addresses the root causes of Africa's persistent poverty through an investigation of its longue durée history. It interrogates the African past through disease and demography, institutions and governance, African economies and the impact of the export slave trade, colonialism, Africa in the world economy, and culture's influence on accumulation and investment. Several of the chapters take a comparative perspective, placing Africa's developments aside other global patterns. The readership for this book spans from the informed lay reader with an interest in Africa, academics and undergraduate and graduate students, policy makers, and those in the development world.
One of the greatest challenges facing human civilization is the provision of secure, affordable energy without causing catastrophic environmental damage. As the world's largest economy, and as a world leader in energy technologies, the United States is a particularly important case. In the light of increased competition from other countries (particularly China), growing concerns about the local and global environmental impacts of the energy system, an ever-present interest in energy security, and the realization that technological innovation takes place in a complex ecosystem involving a wide range of domestic and international actors, this volume provides a comprehensive and analytical assessment of the role that the US government should play in energy technology innovation. It will be invaluable for policy makers in energy innovation and for researchers studying energy innovation, future energy technologies, climate-change mitigation, and innovation management. It will act as a suppl
Urbanization is a phenomenon that brings into focus a range of topics of broad interest to scholars. It is one of the central, enduring interests of anthropological archaeology. Because urbanization is a transformational process, it changes the relationships between social and cultural variables such as demography, economy, politics, and ideology. As one of a handful of cases in the ancient world where cities developed independently, Mesoamerica should play a major role in the global, comparative analysis of first-generation cities and urbanism in general. Yet most research focuses on later manifestations of urbanism in Mesoamerica, thereby perpetuating the fallacy that Mesoamerican cities developed relatively late in comparison to urban centers in the rest of the world. This volume presents new data, case studies, and models for approaching the subject of early Mesoamerican cities. It demonstrates how the study of urbanism in Mesoamerica, and all ancient civilizations, is entering a n
This edited volume addresses the root causes of Africa's persistent poverty through an investigation of its longue durée history. It interrogates the African past through disease and demography, institutions and governance, African economies and the impact of the export slave trade, colonialism, Africa in the world economy, and culture's influence on accumulation and investment. Several of the chapters take a comparative perspective, placing Africa's developments aside other global patterns. The readership for this book spans from the informed lay reader with an interest in Africa, academics and undergraduate and graduate students, policy makers, and those in the development world.
What accounts for the large reduction in trade barriers among new democracies in Asia after World War II? Using new data from Japan and Thailand, this book provides a surprising answer: politicians, especially party leaders, liberalized trade by buying off legislative support with side-payments such as pork barrel projects. Trade liberalization was a legislative triumph, not an executive achievement. This finding challenges the conventional 'insulation' argument, which posits that insulating executives from special interest groups and voters is the key to successful trade liberalization. By contrast, this book demonstrates that party leaders built open economy coalitions with legislators by feeding legislators' rent-seeking desires with side-payments rather than depriving their appetites. This book unravels the political foundations of open economy.
Ireland has rarely been out of the news during the past thirty years. Whether as a war-zone in which Catholic nationalists and Protestant Unionists struggled for supremacy, a case study in conflict resolution or an economy that for a time promised to make the Irish among the wealthiest people on the planet, the two Irelands have truly captured the world's imagination. Yet single-volume histories of Ireland are rare. Here, Thomas Bartlett, one of the country's leading historians, sets out a fascinating new history that ranges from prehistory to the present. Integrating politics, society and culture, he offers an authoritative historical road map that shows exactly how – and why – Ireland, north and south, arrived at where it is today. This is an indispensable guide to both the legacies of the past for Ireland's present and to the problems confronting north and south in the contemporary world.
With a population of about six hundred million people, and a combined GNP of more than US$ 2.4 trillion, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is set to become the seventh largest economy in the world. Launched in December 2015, the AEC unveiled initiatives to create a single market and production zone, a competitive and equitable region, and integrated links to the global economy. ASEAN Champions seeks to address the role of the strong local firms in regional integration, how these 'champions' succeeded and endured, despite facing adverse circumstances, and the factors that facilitated or impeded their participation in regional integration. The book provides insights for future firm and government-led strategies to enhance the integration process. By complementing current narratives that focus on macroeconomic, socio-political, and trade considerations, Park, Ungson and Francisco offer an enlightening and engaging read, ideally suited to academics and professionals alike.
Lake Charles experienced dramatic changes following World War II. During the 1950s and 1960s, the city's young petrochemical industry and the nation's rising consumer economy led to a surge of constru
Increasingly, conscientious consumers and green marketers are recognizing that material things, not firms, must be made responsible. Even so, many scholars in ethics, sustainability, and governance focus on people and organizations, ignoring the flows of things. In this book, Ryan Burg argues that material things are fundamental features of moral life, serving as both valuable instruments and guides for responsibility. Unless care is taken for these non-living entities, living things cannot be protected. Viewing the global economy as a network of material transfers, Burg argues that to facilitate object care, professionals must act as stewards. By tracing the origins and disposal of workplace objects through this material network, businesses and employees can discover the outcomes for which they are responsible, and managers can align ethics, sustainability and governance with a truly global formulation of responsibility.
There has been a recent upsurge in the tourism sector across the globe. This has facilitated the progress of tourism industry and its contribution to the economy of the world. This book is a collectio
This analysis of how multi-level networked governance has superseded the liberal system of interdependent states focuses on the role of law in mediating power and shows how lawyers have shaped the main features of capitalism, especially the transnational corporation. It covers the main institutions regulating the world economy, including the World Bank, the IMF, the WTO and a myriad of other bodies, and introduces the reader to key regulatory arenas: corporate governance, competition policy, investment protection, anti-corruption rules, corporate codes and corporate liability, international taxation, avoidance and evasion and the campaign to combat them, the offshore finance system, international financial regulation and its contribution to the financial crisis, trade rules and their interaction with standards especially for food safety and environmental protection, the regulation of key services (telecommunications and finance), intellectual property and the tensions between exclusive
This is a comprehensive introduction to the brand new theory of conic finance, also referred to as the two-price theory, which determines bid and ask prices in a consistent and fundamentally motivated manner. Whilst theories of one price classically eliminate all risk, the concept of acceptable risks is critical to the foundations of the two-price theory which sees risk elimination as typically unattainable in a modern financial economy. Practical examples and case studies provide the reader with a comprehensive introduction to the fundamentals of the theory, a variety of advanced quantitative models, and numerous real-world applications, including portfolio theory, option positioning, hedging, and trading contexts. This book offers a quantitative and practical approach for readers familiar with the basics of mathematical finance to allow them to boldly go where no quant has gone before.
With a population of about six hundred million people, and a combined GNP of more than US$ 2.4 trillion, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is set to become the seventh largest economy in the world. Launched in December 2015, the AEC unveiled initiatives to create a single market and production zone, a competitive and equitable region, and integrated links to the global economy. ASEAN Champions seeks to address the role of the strong local firms in regional integration, how these 'champions' succeeded and endured, despite facing adverse circumstances, and the factors that facilitated or impeded their participation in regional integration. The book provides insights for future firm and government-led strategies to enhance the integration process. By complementing current narratives that focus on macroeconomic, socio-political, and trade considerations, Park, Ungson and Francisco offer an enlightening and engaging read, ideally suited to academics and professionals alike.
With the rise of China in the world economy, businesses from all over the world have moved to explore business opportunities in this market. Managing international business in a transition economy like China is a daunting challenge. Xiaowen Tian presents a practical guide to major managerial issues faced by foreign investors in the China market. These issues are analysed in the light of relevant theoretical models of international business, with reference to current management practices of transnational corporations operating in China. Featuring up-to-date case studies, figures, tables, and coverage of new and expanded topics, this second edition can be used as a textbook for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in international business or other management disciplines, as well as in executive training programmes.
With the rise of China in the world economy, businesses from all over the world have moved to explore business opportunities in this market. Managing international business in a transition economy like China is a daunting challenge. Xiaowen Tian presents a practical guide to major managerial issues faced by foreign investors in the China market. These issues are analysed in the light of relevant theoretical models of international business, with reference to current management practices of transnational corporations operating in China. Featuring up-to-date case studies, figures, tables, and coverage of new and expanded topics, this second edition can be used as a textbook for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in international business or other management disciplines, as well as in executive training programmes.
Exploring a wide range of issues, from the integration of the world economy to how contemporary processes are shaping and shaped by nation-states and how workers are organizing transnationally in resp
Socialist planning played an enormous role in the economic and political history of the twentieth century. Beginning in the USSR it spread round the world. It influenced economic institutions and economic policy in countries as varied as Bulgaria, USA, China, Japan, India, Poland and France. How did it work? What were its weaknesses and strengths? What is its legacy for the twenty-first century? Now in its third edition, this textbook is fully updated to cover the findings of the period since the collapse of the USSR. It provides an overview of socialist planning, explains the underlying theory and its limitations, looks at its implementation in various sectors of the economy, and places developments in their historical context. A new chapter analyses how planning worked in the defence-industrial complex. This book is an ideal text for undergraduate and graduate students taking courses in comparative economic systems and twentieth-century economic history.
