Turnaround
Third World Lessons for First World Growth
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- $17.99
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- $17.99
Publisher Description
Thirty years ago, China seemed hopelessly mired in poverty, Mexico triggered the Third World Debt Crisis, and Brazil suffered under hyperinflation. Since then, these and other developing countries have turned themselves around, while First World nations, battered by crises, depend more than ever on sustained growth in emerging markets.
In Turnaround, economist Peter Blair Henry argues that the secret to emerging countries' success (and ours) is discipline -- sustained commitment to a pragmatic growth strategy. With the global economy teetering on the brink, the stakes are higher than ever. And because stakes are so high for all nations, we need less polarization and more focus on facts to answer the fundamental question: which policy reforms, implemented under what circumstances, actually increase economic efficiency? Pushing past the tired debates, Henry shows that the stock market's forecasts of policy impact provide an important complement to traditional measures.
Through examples ranging from the drastic income disparity between Barbados and his native Jamaica to the "catch up" economics of China and the taming of inflation in Latin America, Henry shows that in much of the emerging world the policy pendulum now swings toward prudence and self-control. With similar discipline and a dash of humility, he concludes, the First World may yet recover and create long-term prosperity for all its citizens.
Bold, rational, and forward-looking, Turnaround offers vital lessons for developed and developing nations in search of stability and growth.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Economist Henry, dean of NYU's Stern School of Business, tackles international macroeconomics a hot topic among economists looking for policies to manage the debt-troubled world financial system and reverse global underperformance. Henry suggests the Third World can help guide the First World to economic recovery, if the highly industrialized world can adopt the "discipline it needs to internalize" Third World economic lessons discussed here. This premise is a stretch, but Henry does show how developing nations sometimes exhibit or are coerced into greater economic realism than G-8 countries. Henry's survey reveals indispensable growth strategies, above all, shrinking debt and removing barriers to trade. In addition, he analyzes "inhibited investment," "cold turkey" austerity programs, and curbing inflation. China's "catch-up economics" and Chile's strong-minded fiscal responsibility, benefiting the country after the 2008 global collapse, no doubt provide cautionary tales for G-8 countries. But neither nation qualifies as Third World. Henry's efforts to draw sharp, convincing policy parallels between the Third and First World lag in a scattered conclusion. However, this readable volume still contains enough insight into global affairs and international economics to attract readers beyond universities and think tanks.