This textbook builds a bridge between the economic principles which form the basis of most introductory textbooks and the issues that students see discussed incessantly in the media. Contemporary Issues in Applied Economics shows how even the most elementary economic analysis can shed new light on some of the principal economic problems which face the world today. Although aimed primarily at first year economics students, it will also be of interest to those studying related subjects which require a background knowledge of economics. The lively subject matter coupled with the non-technical nature of the approach means that the book will be of interest not only to economics students but also to non-specialists wishing to keep well informed about current issues of economic policy.

There is no shortage of opinion about the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Some see it as the agent of austerity, being manipulated by wealthy nations and forcing poorer countries to pursue economic policies that suppress growth and development. A sharply contrasting view regards it as bailing out such countries with large amounts of soft finance, allowing them to avoid necessary adjustment. The challenge is to evaluate the alternative arguments and to distinguish reality from rhetoric.In this book, the authors undertake a careful and detailed empirical analysis of the underlying issues, covering participation in IMF programs, their implementation and effects on economic growth, and on the willingness of international capital markets to lend. Blending research methodologies and crossing conventional disciplinary boundaries, what emerges is a balanced and nuanced assessment of the IMF's operations that confronts many commonly held views. Unique in its broad scope, this careful examination of the IMF will be of great interest to students and academics in the fields of international economics and international relations. Those involved in international financial institutions and national monetary institutions will also find it to be an impartial and illuminating study.

This book focuses on the international financial problems of developing countries and the ways in which international financial policy might be used to alleviate them. A strong theme that emerges is that developing countries cannot be treated as a homogenous group from the viewpoint of their international financial problems. At the very least, a distinction needs to be drawn between the newly industrialising countries of Latin America and South-east Asia and the low income countries of Africa and Asia.

This collection of articles and papers has been organised under a limited number of specific themes in international financial economics, including balance of payment theory and policy, the activities of the IMF, Special Drawing Rights, the role of the private financial markets, and the international economic order. A unifying theme running through all the essays is that some degree of management of international financial affairs is desirable. The book has a strong policy orientation and should be of interest to students and practitioners of international financial economics alike.

This book is available either individually, or as part of the specially-priced Arguments of the Philosphers Collection.

A large and growing academic literature seeks to analyse the key aspects of the International Monetary Fund's operations from both theoretical and empirical perspectives. This two-volume set draws together what are generally acknowledged to be the most important contributions. In the main it focuses on the economics of the IMF but also reflects the fact that a full understanding of the Fund will only be achieved if its political dimensions are also addressed. The collected articles demonstrate the way in which research on the IMF has evolved over time. They cover the role of the IMF, the determinants of IMF lending, conditionality and the implementation and effects of IMF programs, the prolonged use of IMF resources as well as the IMF's own reserve asset, the Special Drawing Right. No serious student of the IMF will want to be without this up-to-date and comprehensive collection.

In this book the author investigates the relationship between the international monetary system and the less developed countries of the world. In the period since 1945 growing concern has been shown over the international monetary problems which LDCs face, and since 1971 LDCs have been significant participants in the reform of the international monetary system. After tracing the evolution of the relationship between LDCs and the International Monetary Fund, the book goes on to examine, with full reference to the available empirical evidence, the major causes and consequences of LDCs' international monetary problems. Topics covered include: export instability; the terms of trade; the demand for reserves and reserve adequacy; and adjustment difficulties. A thorough examination is then made of the ways in which financial assistance has been provided to LDCs through the IMF and the Eurocurrency market. Finally, certain key policy issues are discussed: the commodity problem; the link between the creation of international liquidity and the provision of development aid; and exchange rate policy. Each chapter is followed by an extensive bibliography which is designed to help the reader to pursue further any topic of particular interest. The presentation, which is non-mathematical, is in the form of a textbook. The issues are surveyed, the main arguments discussed, and the available empirical evidence presented. It is revealed, however, that on many issues it is at present difficult to draw firm conclusions. The book will be of interest to students of international, monetary, and development economics.

First published in 1972, Philosophical Tasks was written to identify and examine some central themes in contemporary Anglo-American philosophy. The book explores the claim that philosophy is essentially linguistic, and considers in particular such topics as philosophy and science, fact and language, conceptual analysis, first- and second-order tasks, scepticism, ordinary language, and conceptual frameworks.

First Published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This two volume set includes the most influential writings on international debt. In addition to essential early material, the editors have assembled the key contributions written during the unfolding of the modern international debt drama from the early 1970s. An introductory chapter by the editors explains the context and order in which the writings are presented. In particular, the individual contributions are grouped under sequential headings which are intended to draw out key themes and relationships between the concerns of the original authors. This collection reflects clearly the interaction between the evolution of the international policy debate and the development of major analytical insights on the debt problem and its resolution.

The International Monetary Fund has been criticised from both the right and the left of the political spectrum with the right arguing that it is too interventionist and creates more problems than it solves and the left on occasion demanding that it be abolished altogether. What seems almost beyond question is that the IMF needs to be reformed.
Defining a future role for the IMF will always be a controversial issue, but vital to any considerations will be a measured assessment of how it has operated in the past. This excellent new book from an internationally respected expert on the IMF intends to do just that. Starting with an historical background tracing the evolution of the IMF, the book goes on to cover such themes as:
*The circumstances under which countries turn to the IMF
*The various aspects of IMF conditionality
*Institutional issues such as lending facilities and how the fund is resourced.
Bringing together an array of articles, this excellent new book will undoubtedly be required reading for anyone with a serious interest in development studies as well as being an eye-opening read for policy makers involved with the IMF.

The International Monetary Fund has been criticised from both the right and the left of the political spectrum with the right arguing that it is too interventionist and creates more problems than it solves and the left on occasion demanding that it be abolished altogether. What seems almost beyond question is that the IMF needs to be reformed.
Defining a future role for the IMF will always be a controversial issue, but vital to any considerations will be a measured assessment of how it has operated in the past. This excellent new book from an internationally respected expert on the IMF intends to do just that. Starting with an historical background tracing the evolution of the IMF, the book goes on to cover such themes as:
*The circumstances under which countries turn to the IMF
*The various aspects of IMF conditionality
*Institutional issues such as lending facilities and how the fund is resourced.
Bringing together an array of articles, this excellent new book will undoubtedly be required reading for anyone with a serious interest in development studies as well as being an eye-opening read for policy makers involved with the IMF.

First published in 1962. Kant's philosophical works, and especially the Critique of Pure Reason, have had some influence on recent British philosophy. But the complexities of Kant's arguments, and the unfamiliarity of his vocabulary, inhibit understanding of his point of view. In Kant's Theory of Knowledge an attempt is made to relate Kant's arguments in the Critique of Pure Reason to contemporary issues by expressing them in a more modern idiom. The selection of issues discussed is intended to present a continuous argument, of an epistemological kind, which runs centrally through the Critique. The argument deals with essentially with the problems, raised in the Transcendental Analytic, about the status of categories. It deals with certain preliminary assumptions made in setting these problems, and discusses the way in which the various sections of the Analytic contribute to their solution. It also deals with Kant's criticisms of traditional metaphysics, and ends with an account of his effort in the Third Antinomy to resolve the conflict between freedom and causality, and so to effect a transition of knowledge to moral philosophy.

As the linchpin of the global financial system, the International Monetary Fund provides the balance of payments support, chiefly to developing countries, conditional on strict remedial policy measures.
Its approach to policy remains highly controversial, however. While the Fund claims it has adapted, critics allege its policies are harshly doctrinaire, imposing hardships on already poverty-stricken people. For the critics, the half century of its existence is `fifty yeats too long' and radical change is essential.
This book examines the arguments, tracing the extent of Fund adaption, presenting major new evidence on the consequences of fund programes, and considering its future role.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203392582

As the linchpin of the global financial system, the International Monetary Fund provides the balance of payments support, chiefly to developing countries, conditional on strict remedial policy measures. Its approach to policy remains highly controversial, however. While the Fund claims it has adapted, critics allege its policies are harshly doctrinaire, imposing hardships on already poverty-stricken people. For the critics, the half century of its existence is `fifty years too long' and radical change is essential. This book examines the arguments, tracing the extent of Fund adaption, presenting major new evidence on the consequences of fund programes, and considering its future role.

"The Revolutionary Kant offers a new appreciation of Kant's classic, arguing that Kant's reform of philosophy was far more radical than has been previously understood. The book examines his proposed revolutionary reform -- to abandon traditional metaphysics and point philosophy in a new direction -- and contends that critics have misrepresented conflicts between Kant and his predecessors. Kant, Bird argues, was not a flawed innovator but an advocate of a new philosophical project, one that began to be appreciated only in the twentieth century.

This collection of articles and papers has been organised under a limited number of specific themes in international financial economics, including balance of payment theory and policy, the activities of the IMF, Special Drawing Rights, the role of the private financial markets, and the international economic order. A unifying theme running through all the essays is that some degree of management of international financial affairs is desirable. The book has a strong policy orientation and should be of interest to students and practitioners of international financial economics alike.

This book focuses on the international financial problems of developing countries and the ways in which international financial policy might be used to alleviate them. A strong theme that emerges is that developing countries cannot be treated as a homogenous group from the viewpoint of their international financial problems. At the very least, a distinction needs to be drawn between the newly industrialising countries of Latin America and South-east Asia and the low income countries of Africa and Asia.

First published in 1962. Kant's philosophical works, and especially the Critique of Pure Reason, have had some influence on recent British philosophy. But the complexities of Kant's arguments, and the unfamiliarity of his vocabulary, inhibit understanding of his point of view. In Kant's Theory of Knowledge an attempt is made to relate Kant's arguments in the Critique of Pure Reason to contemporary issues by expressing them in a more modern idiom. The selection of issues discussed is intended to present a continuous argument, of an epistemological kind, which runs centrally through the Critique. The argument deals with essentially with the problems, raised in the Transcendental Analytic, about the status of categories. It deals with certain preliminary assumptions made in setting these problems, and discusses the way in which the various sections of the Analytic contribute to their solution. It also deals with Kant's criticisms of traditional metaphysics, and ends with an account of his effort in the Third Antinomy to resolve the conflict between freedom and causality, and so to effect a transition of knowledge to moral philosophy.