Author: OECD Publisher: OECD Publishing ISBN: 9264162933 Category : Languages : en Pages : 116
Book Description
This book examines the channels through which open markets deliver considerable benefits to societies and their citizens; recalls the real pocket-book costs of protectionism; and addresses the full range of concerns that feature prominently in ongoing discussions over the effects of liberalisation.
Author: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Publisher: OECD ISBN: Category : Free trade Languages : en Pages : 184
Book Description
The benefits of open markets are tangible. In the last decade, countries that have been more open to trade and investment have achieved double the average annual growth of more closed economies. More individuals, firms and nations than ever before depend on the gains from trade and investment liberalisation. Yet anxiety about the effects of greater market integration remains. It is essential for long-term world prosperity that countries' commitment to trade and investment liberalisation be sustained. To be credible, that commitment must be rooted in and enjoy broad public support and understanding. This makes it all the more important to communicate what trade and investment liberalisation can and cannot do and be held responsible for. Trade and investment liberalisation is not painless. It should not be viewed as a cure-all nor presented as an end in itself. It is, however, an essential component of any coherent set of policies aimed at helping societies adjust to - and take advantage of - technology-driven transformations whose pace and depth are unprecedented. The stakes are high. This book examines the various channels through which open markets deliver considerable benefits to societies and their citizens; recalls the real pocket-book costs of protectionism; and addresses the full range of concerns that feature prominently in ongoing discussions over the effects of market liberalisation on employment, income distribution, environmental protection and national sovereignty. A central message of this book is that liberalisation forms part of the solution to the concerns of citizens, rather than being their root cause. The book's comprehensive treatment of the ins and outs of trade and investment liberalisation should make an important contribution to the public debate. It is essential reading for public officials, business leaders and private citizens who wish to take an active part in it.
Author: Bernard E. Harcourt Publisher: Harvard University Press ISBN: 0674971329 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 337
Book Description
It is widely believed today that the free market is the best mechanism ever invented to efficiently allocate resources in society. Just as fundamental as faith in the free market is the belief that government has a legitimate and competent role in policing and the punishment arena. This curious incendiary combination of free market efficiency and the Big Brother state has become seemingly obvious, but it hinges on the illusion of a supposedly natural order in the economic realm. The Illusion of Free Markets argues that our faith in “free markets” has severely distorted American politics and punishment practices. Bernard Harcourt traces the birth of the idea of natural order to eighteenth-century economic thought and reveals its gradual evolution through the Chicago School of economics and ultimately into today’s myth of the free market. The modern category of “liberty” emerged in reaction to an earlier, integrated vision of punishment and public economy, known in the eighteenth century as “police.” This development shaped the dominant belief today that competitive markets are inherently efficient and should be sharply demarcated from a government-run penal sphere. This modern vision rests on a simple but devastating illusion. Superimposing the political categories of “freedom” or “discipline” on forms of market organization has the unfortunate effect of obscuring rather than enlightening. It obscures by making both the free market and the prison system seem natural and necessary. In the process, it facilitated the birth of the penitentiary system in the nineteenth century and its ultimate culmination into mass incarceration today.
Author: Philippe Aghion Publisher: International Monetary Fund ISBN: 1513568663 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 22
Book Description
We show empirical evidence that there may not be a tradeoff between market income inequality and high sustained growth, which is key for poverty alleviation. We argue that the economies that achieved high sustained growth and low market income inequality are characterized by dynamism—a drive toward sophisticated export industries, innovation, and creative destruction and a high level of competition. What a country produces and how much it competes domestically and internationally are important for achieving fair and inclusive markets. We explore policy options to steer industrial and market structures toward providing growth opportunities for both workers and firms.
Author: Arve Hansen Publisher: Springer Nature ISBN: 9811562482 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 358
Book Description
This book is intended for policy-makers, academics and students of development studies, area studies, political economy, geography and political science. Three of the best global performers in terms of economic growth are authoritarian states led by communist parties. The ‘socialist market economy’ model employed in China, Vietnam and Laos performs better than the economic systems in countries at a similar level of income per capita on a wide range of development indicators, yet market reforms and governance failures have led to highly unequal societies and significant environmental problems. This book presents the first comparative study of development in these three countries. Written by country experts and scholars of development studies, it explores the ongoing quest for market versus state within their model, and the coherence of their development. Chapter 5 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.
Author: Martin Kellermann Publisher: World Bank Publications ISBN: 1464813728 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 275
Book Description
In a modern world with rapidly growing international trade, countries compete less based on the availability of natural resources, geographical advantages, and lower labor costs and more on factors related to firms' ability to enter and compete in new markets. One such factor is the ability to demonstrate the quality and safety of goods and services expected by consumers and confirm compliance with international standards. To assure such compliance, a sound quality infrastructure (QI) ecosystem is essential. Jointly developed by the World Bank Group and the National Metrology Institute of Germany, this guide is designed to help development partners and governments analyze a country's quality infrastructure ecosystems and provide recommendations to design and implement reforms and enhance the capacity of their QI institutions.
Author: Richard J. Gilbert Publisher: MIT Press ISBN: 0262545799 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 337
Book Description
A proposal for moving from price-centric to innovation-centric competition policy, reviewing theory and evidence on economic incentives for innovation. Competition policy and antitrust enforcement have traditionally focused on prices rather than innovation. Economic theory shows the ways that price competition benefits consumers, and courts, antitrust agencies, and economists have developed tools for the quantitative evaluation of price impacts. Antitrust law does not preclude interventions to encourage innovation, but over time the interpretation of the laws has raised obstacles to enforcement policies for innovation. In this book, economist Richard Gilbert proposes a shift from price-centric to innovation-centric competition policy. Antitrust enforcement should be concerned with protecting incentives for innovation and preserving opportunities for dynamic, rather than static, competition. In a high-technology economy, Gilbert argues, innovation matters. Gilbert considers both theory and available empirical evidence on the relationships among market structure, firm behavior, and the production of new products and services. He reviews the distinctive features of the high-tech economy and why current analytical tools used by antitrust enforcers aren't up to the task of assessing innovation concerns. He considers, from the perspective of innovation competition, Kenneth Arrow's “replacement effect” and the Schumpeterian theory of market power and appropriation; discusses the effect of mergers on innovation and future price competition; and reviews the empirical literature on competition, mergers, and innovation. He describes examples of merger enforcement by US and European antitrust agencies; examines cases brought against Microsoft and Google; and discusses the risks and benefits of interoperability standards. Finally, he offers recommendations for competition policy. The open access edition of this book was made possible by generous funding from Arcadia – a charitable fund of Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin.
Author: Simon Constable Publisher: HarperBusiness ISBN: 9780062001382 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
An entertaining, must-have guide to the indicators most investors aren't following—but should be! To make the best possible investment decisions, savvy investors know that they should pay close attention to economic indicators. But while most are looking at conventional barometers like unemployment rates and housing starts, the smartest investors are following the often ignored, sometimes curious, but always interesting indicators that offer a true sense of where the economy is and where it's going. They provide the vital information needed to beat the market. In The Wall Street Journal Guide to the 50 Economic Indicators That Really Matter, Simon Constable and Robert E. Wright offer investors powerful new tools to guide them through the markets. Whether it's the VIX index (which tracks the level of anxiety among investors) or the Vixen index (which tracks the number of attractive waitresses in your hometown), this essential guide includes in-depth analyses of 50 valuable economic indicators, as well as what to watch for, what to do when movement happens, and the risk level involved in taking action. This must-have guide entertains and enlightens while offering essential advice on navigating the global economic climate.
Author: OECD
Author: 
Author: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Author: Bernard E. Harcourt
Author: Philippe Aghion
Author: Arve Hansen
Author: Martin Kellermann
Author: Richard J. Gilbert
Author: Simon Constable
Author: Adam Smith