Global Capital Flows

The book examines the rapid growth and dramatic changes in capital flows globally and to emerging markets. In the context of relevant economic theory, it analyses benefits and costs of large and volatile capital flows to developing countries; the latter includes damaging currency crises as the Mexican and East Asian economies. The book makes innovative proposals on how best national governments - and especially - international organisations can avoid such crises.

'The fantastic revolution in financial markets of recent decades is still gaining momentum. Thanks to technological miracles of communication and computation, the scope and volume of financial activities rapidly multiply, greatly surpassing the growth of other industries. These developments are encouraged by the dominant trend in political ideology and economic policy throughout the world. Prevailing doctrines foster deregulation and privatisation; they downsize governments and exalt free markets; they stress international trade and investment as against economic nationalism and protectionism. In this book Stephany Griffith-Jones reviews the breathtaking recent history of financial deregulation, liberalisation, and globalization. She sees considerable merit in these trends, at the same time that they can and sometimes do generate volatility and instability that inflict real costs on whole economies. She earnestly seeks some feasible compromises. Those who rush emerging and transition economies into premature currency convertibility and free trade in financial instruments are not doing those countries a favour. After all, during 1947-72, the halcyon quarter century of economic growth, world trade, and international real investment, some major capitalist democracies maintained controls on currency transactions and capital movements. These were not fully dismantled until the 1980s. Experience has not, not yet anyway, vindicated current orthodox confidence that free global financial markets are the keys to stable world wide prosperity. Stephany Griffith-Jones expounds these themes with clarity and conviction, firmly grounded in her thorough knowledge of the theory and practice of the economics of finance.' - James Tobin, Nobel Laureate for Economics

'Griffith-Jones' survey of the theoretical literature behine financial crises is excellent and is recommended for any IPE enthusiast...this survey of world-wide foreign capital flows during the early 1990s will likely be on many international finance-course reading-lists.' - Charles W. Parker, III, Millennium: Journal of International Studies

Stephany Griffith-Jones is with the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex.