The international monetary system and the less developed countries /

Includes index.

Bibliography: p. 319-337.

Most discussions of the international monetary system pay little heed to less developed countries (LDCs). The reason is not difficult to appreciate: although they are numerous, LDCs are not major actors on the world's monetary stage. Individually, they tend to be relatively small. Collectively, they account for only a small share of global transactions. Their currencies are mostly inconvertible; their financial markets, usually rudimentary;
their payments balances, almost always in deficit. Overall, their influence on international monetary events is negligible. As compared with the prima donnas of the monetary scene, LDCs are mere walk-ons.
Graham Bird has tried to correct for this deficiency by exploring as fully as possible the relationship between the LDCs and the monetary system. The result is a book that is at once comprehensive, persuasive, and sound. Although primarily designed as a textbook for undergraduates, it should in fact prove useful even for specialists in the field. For a long time to come, it should serve as the standard reference on this relatively neglected subject. The book is divided into twelve chapters, each followed by a useful bibliography designed to help readers pursue specialized topics of particular interest. The format of most of the chapters is similar. The principal issues are surveyed, the main arguments discussed, and,--wherever possible, available empirical evidence presented and analysed.
The tone throughout is moderate. Bird eschews the colourful generalization or the facile judgment. Fully aware of the complexity and ambiguity of reality, he prefers instead to
emphasize how difficult it is, in most issues, to draw genuinely firm conclusions on the basis of existing evidence. Students prospecting for potential research topics should find this book a gold mine.

usc 13/04/2018

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