Several papers deal with informal credit markets, examining the effect of informal finance on economic development and the exponential growth in microfinance by private financial institutions in Latin America and in the United States. The book is intended for policy makers and scholars interested in capital markets in developing and transition economies. It is also suitable for use as a supplementary text in upper level undergraduate and graduate courses in development finance. This collection of recently published essays by a leading critic of regionalism offers an assessment of the economic impact of PTAs on member countries and the world. The first set of essays present a theoretical analysis of the issues using simple economic models, and study the relationship between regionalism and multilateralism.
Subsequent essays evaluate the role of PTAs in Asia, North America and Latin America.
The general theme of the book is that, on balance, trade liberalization through PTAs is a mistake. Trade diversion, and the creation of complicated and discriminatory tariff regimes with increased tariffs for non-member countries the consequences of PTAs are likely to undermine the multilateral trading system. In many ways, financial variables and high profitability were at the heart of the unprecedented 35-year expansion, and not just the traditional explanations of accumulation and high productivity. The WSM offers several explanations of the crisis including a loss of short term competitiveness, due in part to the asset price bubble crowding out viable export opportunities. In summary, the origins of East Asia's ascent and of its demise are but the same.