This volume addresses the attractiveness of financial centers with a primary focus on the mutual fund industry. It uses different empirical analysis approaches in an attempt to disentangle the reasons for location attractiveness and in order to identify its influence on fund pricing. The presented research tackles an issue that is fundamental to the understanding of organizational behavior in finance - the rationale in the decision-making process of market participants and its consequences for an economy.

The Theory of Money and Finance, by the same author, provided an introduction to the basic theory and concluded by introducing the idea of monetary disequilibrium, with the money supply process operating through bank credit creation. First published in 1981, this book develops that theme and provides empirical evidence in support of such an approach.

This book pulls together papers presented at a conference in honour of the 1981 Nobel Prize Winner for Economic Science, the late James Tobin. Among the contributors are Olivier Blanchard, Edmund Phelps, Charles Goodhart and Marco Buti. One of the main aims of the conference was to discuss what potential role monetary policy has on economic activity and unemployment reduction in three key currency zones - the United States, European Union and Japan.

The third volume of the series presents contributions to the proceedings of the 12th and 13th annual conference of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at Sofia University. The fourteen articles by authors of six nations (Bulgaria, China, Germany, Italy, Russia, and Switzerland) have been selected by international peer reviews. The contributions are arranged in the sections theoretic approaches, empirical studies on European countries and contributions to sustainable development in theory and application. The volume contains 33 graphs, 20 tables and three drawings.

The global crude oil market is critically important in many respects. It is the fuel that drives the global economy and, as such, is the focus of climate policies. Moreover, crude oil is the basis of a tradable financial asset. It is therefore connected to several outstanding macroeconomic developments of recent years, including financial market fluctuations, the financial crisis and the exceptional conduct of monetary policy. This book investigates the impacts of monetary policy and the financial system on the global crude oil market. Furthermore, it outlines how monetary policy may also be used to guarantee stability and to contribute to ecological sustainability. This unique and innovative book will appeal to students and economists interested in macroeconomics, the environment, energy and monetary policy. It will also be essential reading for policy makers and those interested in economic policy that will benefit both society and the environment.

This book examines monetary policy, central banking and exchange rate regimes in the Middle East and North Africa. Part I covers central banking and monetary policy, while Part II covers monetary policy and exchange rate regimes. Some chapters focus on the monetary frameworks of particular countries, including Lebanon, Algeria, Syria, Tunisia, Morocco, and Turkey, outlining the different systems operated in each case, considering their successes and failures, and discussing important issues such as government policy, macroeconomic performance, inflation and inflation targeting, central bank independence and the impact of broader political economic developments on the conduct of monetary policy. Other chapters cover thematic issues across the whole region, including: central bank independence, operations of debtor central banks, the effect of exchange rates on inflation, and the effect on countries' trade of alternative exchange rate regimes. Drawing on the insights of scholars and policy-makers, this book is a vital resource for anyone wanting to understand the economies of the Middle East and North Africa.

First published in 1988, this reissue reconstructs the reaction of financial markets to war, defeat, and revolution in Europe, from the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in June 1914, to the bankruptcy of Germany in July 1931. Dr. Brown demonstrates how the contemporary investor can improve the wisdom of his decisions by gaining an understanding of the financial history of these years. He also demonstrates how the skilled investor might project different political and economic realities and estimate their probability of recurrence. In his reconstruction work, Brendan Brown has undertaken extensive research into the financial press in the various European countries, seeing this as a prime clue to the mood in markets at the time. The findings will interest not just economists and financial specialists, but also readers keen to improve their understanding of the political and social events of the period.

The last two decades have seen a number of important developments in exchange rate economics, with substantial contributions to both its theory and empirics. While our understanding of exchange rates has significantly improved, a number of challenges and open questions in the exchange rate debate still remain. In these two volumes, the editors have brought together a selection of key articles which are representative of recent developments in the exchange rate economics literature. This important collection is essential for academic economists and practitioners interested in understanding and participating in the exchange rate debate.

Credit cooperatives in India make up one of the largest rural financial systems in the world. Playing a vital role in dispensing credit in largely agricultural areas, they are also the weakest link in the formal credit delivery system. This book provides a valuable case study of the traditional banking system in this developing economy, exploring the reasons for the poor performance of credit cooperatives in India and suggesting measures to revitalise them.

Although this sector has grown along with the micro-credit sector to provide finance for the poor and the less creditworthy borrowers, financing development still remains a major problem in the developing world. However, the financial health of credit cooperatives in India has been a matter of perennial concern. The author argues that cooperatives hold great promise for financial inclusion if the financial position of the cooperatives can be consolidated. Providing a detailed analysis of the historical evolution of cooperatives in India, the book establishes the link between different segments of this institutional system and their performance in a commercial sense to show that cooperatives occupy an important place in India 's financial edifice as they play a key role in the multi-agency framework for rural credit delivery. As such, the analysis provides a valuable reference for scholars of economics, Asian economics and finance.

The 12 papers in this edited volume discuss key elements of monetarism, including coin denominations, the role of bullion and case studies of substitute moneys.

Harcourt has made substantial and wide-ranging contributions to economics in general, and to post Keynesian economics in particular. In this volume more than forty leading economists pay tribute to and critically evaluate his work. The contributors represent a wide range of schools in economics, and include Nobel Laureates Paul Samuelson and Robert Solow.

This edited collection assesses the level of financial integration in the European Union (EU) and the differences across the countries and segments of the EU financial system. Progress in financial integration is key to the EU's economic growth and competitiveness and although it has advanced substantially, the process is still far from completion. This book focuses on the pace of financial integration in the EU with special emphasis on the new EU Member States and investigates their progress in comparison with 'old' EU countries. The book is the first of its kind to include and evaluate the effects of the global financial crisis on the process of EU financial integration. In particular, the book's contributors address the issue of whether a high degree of financial integration contributed to the intensification of the financial crisis, or whether a low level of integration prevented countries and financial industries from some of the negative effects of the crisis. Although most of the chapters apply contemporary econometric tools, the technical part is always reduced to indispensable minimum and the emphasis is given to economic interpretation of the results. The book aims to offer an up to date and insightful examination of the process of financial integration in the EU today.

This work presents a comprehensive history and evaluation of the role of the 100 percent reserve plan in the banking legislation of the New Deal reform era from its inception in 1933 to its re-emergence in the current financial reform debate in the US.

Understanding money's nature as political, institutional, and material answers today's big money questions. Money remains a foundational question of social theory. What is money? Why does something so insubstantial have value? How do money systems make promises function like valuable things? Why are money systems always hierarchical yet variable? The answer, the book argues, is politics. Money is institutionalised social power. Politics generates institutions that differentially lock into the future product of political and economic collectives. Money emerges from the institutionalisation of social antagonisms to encapsulate a collective's productive potential in a flexible, tradable instrument. This takes a system. Money is built in hierarchical layers out of the inherently variable material of politics and at various economic scales. This book outlines these variable processes theoretically and through case studies.

All Fall Down traces the ways in which changes in financial structure and regulation eroded monetary control and led to historically high levels of debt relative to GDP in both developed and emerging economies. Rising stocks of debt drove the global financial system into crisis in 2008 when households, businesses, financial institutions and the public sector in some countries strained to generate sufficient income for debt service. The stagnation and fall in asset prices that followed began the process of unwinding that led to a run on the financial sector by the financial sector. This engaging examination describes critical developments that changed the structure of US financial markets as well as developments and innovations in US credit markets that created the context for crisis. It discusses the advent of dollar hegemony, the critical role of international reserves in generating credit, the emergence of the debt bubble in the 1980s and the mounting risks of debt in the new millennium. The author also proposes a systemic approach to monetary control, offering two new reform proposals. The analysis concludes that reforms are needed in order to support sustainable economic activity in the US and global economies. This volume will appeal to students and scholars of economics interested in international finance and banking, financial regulation and monetary policy implementation. It will also be of interest to business economists, lawyers, policymakers and journalists concerned with the effects of financial instability and involved in ongoing debates on financial and monetary reform.

Credit spreads express how markets evaluate the riskiness of corporate bonds compared to risk-free investments. Since credit spreads have been highly volatile especially during the last decade it is important for academics and practitioners alike to understand the dynamic interdependencies between credit spreads and their determinants. Based on a sample of European corporate bonds and different macroeconomic variables the author analyzes the determinants of credit spreads during the period of 1999 to 2009. With a macro-finance term structure model he shows that the European corporate bond market is largely integrated with some remaining segmentation. Furthermore, panel regressions yield that declining liquidity leads to a significant widening of credit spreads especially during the recent financial crisis. Finally, he demonstrates based on a cointegration analysis that a long-term relationship exists between credit spreads and their determinants and that credit spreads were significantly overpriced after the collapse of Lehman Brothers but have almost returned to equilibrium towards the end of 2009.

Comparative in structure and covering an extensive number of transition countries in its survey, this comprehensive book overviews the development of the banking systems in Central and Eastern European since the communist era until the present time. Taking in a range of countries including Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Barisitz - an economist with the Central Bank of Austra - analyzes the evolution of legal foundations, banking supervision, banks' major sources of assets, liabilities, earnings and related changes, banking crises, restructuring, rehabilitation programs, the role of foreign-owned banks and FDI. A significant publication, it is fascinating reading for all those studying and working in the areas of transition economy, macro and monetary economy and economic history

What do cacao beans, cowrie shells, paper cards, cigarettes and digital databases all have in common? At some time, they have been used as a form of money. Money is an essential aspect of everyday life and something that we usually take for granted until it all goes wrong. This book traces the role, growth and impact of money and finance on individuals, human civilisation and the type of economy we live in. The financial history of the world reads like a fascinating novel with innumerable twists and turns. We strive for financial stability and security, yet this often proves surprisingly ephemeral. Just as we hope we have reached a new plateau of prosperity, the financial system has a habit of throwing a spanner in the works, forcing us to change and adapt to new circumstances. This book traces the financial system from its birth as a credit system in ancient Mesopotamia, to the financial revolutions of the 20th and 21st centuries. This is the story of money, finance and economics but also its interaction with people, governments and society. Why did the American forces desperately try to destroy money during the American Revolution? Why do we tend to succumb to boom and busts? And if inflation is bad, why is deflation even worse? Also, the book looks at the effect money has on ourselves. Does money make us irrational? Is money really the root of all evil, or should we celebrate money for its potential to create prosperity and overcome poverty?

Money and Finance After the Crisis provides a critical multi-disciplinary perspective on the post-crisis financial world in all its complexity, dynamism and unpredictability. Contributions illuminate the diversity of ways in which money and finance continue to shape global political economy and society. * A multidisciplinary collection of essays that study the geographies of money and finance that have unfolded in the wake of the financial crisis * Contributions discuss a wide range of contemporary social formations, including the complexities of modern debt-driven financial markets * Chapters critically explore proliferating forms and spaces of financial power, from the realms of orthodox finance capital to biodiversity conservation * Contributions demonstrate the centrality of money and finance to contemporary capitalism and its political and cultural economies

The activities of central banks are relevant to everyone in society. This book starts by considering how and why in general central banks evolved and specifically the special aspects of the contribution of the Northern European Central Banking Tradition. With that foundation, the book will then turn to a series of contemporary themes. Firstly, this book looks at independence, how central banks can actually influence their respective economies, goals, responsibilities and governance. This collection of papers, formulated from the joint conference of the Bank of Finland and the Deutsche Bundesbank in November 2007, will help motivate continuing research into the institutional design of central banks and promote a better understanding of the many challenges central banks are facing today. This volume gives a detailed perspective on the benefits of price stability and central bank independence and, due to the advances in macroeconomic theory, has prompted a substantial rethink on central banks' institutional design. With contributions from such scholars as Anne Sibert and Forrest Capie and a foreword by Erkki Liikanen and Professor Axel A. Weber, this volume will be useful reading for monetary economists around the world as well as all those with an interest in central banks and banking more generally.

First published in 1981, this book concerns itself with the different ways in which money is used, the relationships which then arise, and the institutions concerned in maintaining its various functions. Thomas Crump examines the emergence of institutions with familiar and distinctive monetary roles: the state, the market and the banking system. However, other uses of money - such as for gambling or the payment of fines - are also taken into account, in an exhaustive, encyclopedic treatment of the subject, which extends far beyond the range of conventional treatises on money.

The contributors to this edited volume explore the effects of various development strategies and associated macroeconomic policies on women's well-being and progress towards gender equality. Detailed analyses of major UN reports on gender reveal the different approaches to assessing absolute and relative progress for women and the need to take into account the specifics of policy regimes when making such assessments. The book argues that neoliberal policies, especially the liberalization of trade and investment, make it difficult to close gender wage and earnings gaps, and new gender sensitive policies need to be devised. These and other issues are all examined in more detail in several gendered development histories of countries from Latin America and Asia.

The Theory of Money and Finance, by the same author, provided an introduction to the basic theory and concluded by introducing the idea of monetary disequilibrium, with the money supply process operating through bank credit creation. First published in 1981, this book develops that theme and provides empirical evidence in support of such an approach.

The recent financial crisis has troubled the US, Europe, and beyond, and is indicative of the integrated world in which we live. Today, transactions take place with the use of foreign currencies, and their values affect the nations' economies and their citizens' welfare. Exchange Rates and International Financial Economics provides readers with the historic, theoretical, and practical knowledge of these relative prices among currencies. While much of the previous work on the topic has been simply descriptive or theoretical, Kallianiotis gives a unique and intimate understanding of international exchange rates and their place in an increasingly globalized world.

Private enterprises have contributed significantly to China's recent economic growth and will play a key role in achieving China's goal of building a comprehensively well-society. But how can private enterprises help China mitigate its macroeconomic problems such as unemployment, income inequality, financial disintermediation, and an unhealthy economic cycle? And what are the main obstacles to private enterprise development? Private Enterprises and China s Economic Development answers these questions by identifying the range of cultural, political and financial challenges confronting China's private enterprises, and assessing their performance and potential. Contributors also analyse the experiences and lessons of other countries, and propose strategies and policies to help China promote private enterprise development.

Using the most up to date research on private enterprises, including detailed econometric analysis and national representative data, authors including economists, policy-makers and academics from the USA, China, Singapore and Canada comprehensively address the most important aspects of China s private enterprise development. As such this book will appeal to students, scholars and policy-makers alike with an interested in the Chinese economy, economic growth, comparative economics and transitional economics.