Inflation Growth And International Finance

This book, originally published in 1975, deals with the sources of economic growth, inflation and the prospects of bringing it under control, floating exchange rates and restrictions on international capital movements. Although aimed at the non-specialist, professional economists willa slo find the book stimulating.

This study reviews the literature on the contribution of low inflation to economic growth and the subsequent widespread adoption of inflation targeting as a monetary policy framework. Edwin Truman addresses the challenges and risks associated with such a framework. Building on these foundations, the study focuses on two major international economic policy issues: (1) the implications of differing national regimes of inflation targeting for international economic policy cooperation; and (2) the adoption of inflation targeting by emerging-market economies which often lack stable monetary policy environments and credible policy authorities—a situation which, among other things, can complicate the use of the inflation targeting framework as the basis for IMF-supported stabilization programs.

The linkage between inflation and economic growth has been the subject of considerable interest and debate. The 18 papers included in this volume comprise the proceedings of a conference on inflation and growth in China that brought together academics, officials and IMF staff members. The papers edited by Manuel Guitián and Robert Mundell, examine issues in international exeperiences with inflation and growth, long-run and short-run structural problems related tgo growth and inflation in China, and the framework in which monetary, fiscal, and exchange rate policies are formulated in China.

This book collects selected articles addressing several currently debated issues in the field of international macroeconomics. They focus on the role of the central banks in the debate on how to come to terms with the long-term decline in productivity growth, insufficient aggregate demand, high economic uncertainty and growing inequalities following the global financial crisis. Central banks are of considerable importance in this debate since understanding the sluggishness of the recovery process as well as its implications for the natural interest rate are key to assessing output gaps and the monetary policy stance. The authors argue that a more dynamic domestic and external aggregate demand helps to raise the inflation rate, easing the constraint deriving from the zero lower bound and allowing monetary policy to depart from its current ultra-accommodative position. Beyond macroeconomic factors, the book also discusses a supportive financial environment as a precondition for the rebound of global economic activity, stressing that understanding capital flows is a prerequisite for economic-policy decisions.

This historically-based textbook on international finance and open-economy macroeconomics provides a complete course on the theory and policies that shaped our international financial system. Utilizing the 1944 Bretton Woods Conference as a unifying theme, the book covers all the standard topics of international finance, such as foreign exchange markets, balance of payments accounting, macroeconomic policy in an open economy, exchange rate crises, multinational enterprises, international banking, and the evolution of our international financial system. The detailed international financial theory is presented in a lively manner that reflects the close relationship between actual world events and the development of economic thought. The book also analyzes the causes of the 2008 international financial crisis and recession, encourages critical thinking about whether the current international financial system promotes human well-being, and concludes with a discussion on whether it is time to summon the world's financial leaders to another Bretton Woods Conference. In additional to providing students with a solid understanding of international finance and open-economy macroeconomics, the book is written in a reader-friendly style that makes it a good reference for anyone interested in the many fascinating issues related to our still-evolving global financial system and, more generally, our global economy. The Instructor's manual is available upon request for all instructors who adopt this book as a course text. Please send your request to [email protected].