The Economics and Politics of Oil in the Caspian Basin

The Caspian Basin region has boomed since the late 1990s due to new oil discoveries, new pipelines that have diversified countries' transport options and world oil prices that have risen from below $10 in 1998 to $70 in 2006.

This book analyzes the experience of the Caspian countries during the oil boom. It is founded on empirical studies, using either macroeconomic tools or an analysis of public budgets, or microeconometric analysis of household survey data or fieldwork in oil-producing regions. Moving from aggregated to disaggregated analysis and, in-keeping with its emphasis on rigorous empirical analysis to the greatest extent possible, several chapters are written by specialists on the Caspian region. Whilst there is an emphasis on the economic consequences of the oil boom, the interdisciplinary aspects of the phenomenon are also recognized. Overall, the analysis is firmly rooted in the region, yet the empirical studies also provide a basis for drawing broader lessons about the effects of an oil boom.

Boris Najman is Associate Professor at the University of Paris XII, France and researcher at CES-ROSES, a joint research unit of University of Paris I and the French National Centre for Scientific Research, CNRS. He is an expert on labour and social policies in transition economies.

Richard Pomfret has been Professor of Economics at the University of Adelaide since 1992. In 2006-7 he is the AGIP Professor of International Economics at the Johns Hopkins University Bologna Center. He is the author of The Central Asian Economies since Independence (2006). His research interests have centred on economic development and international economics.

Gael Raballand received his PhD in economics from the University of Paris I (Sorbonne). Currently, he works as a Young Professional at the World Bank in Washington DC. Prior to this, he was a consultant for the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), Paris.