...story of a small resort village, Bretton Woods, and the global impact it had on Europe and the rest of the world. Bretton Woods institutions were created in 1944 during the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference at the Mount Washington Hotel (The Bretton Woods Committee, n.d.). The Bretton Woods institutions created an international basis for exchanging one currency for another. It also led to the creation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, now known as the World Bank (Stephey, 2008) and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)—the precursor to the World Trade Organization (WTO). In addition to establishing the World Bank, the Committee chose the U.S. dollar as the pillar of international monetary exchange. The meeting provided the world post World War II currency stability which was desperately needed. The Bretton Woods system itself may have collapsed in 1971, when President Richard Nixon severed the link between the dollar and gold — a decision made to prevent a run on Fort Knox, which contained only a third of the gold bullion necessary to cover the amount of dollars in foreign hands. By 1973, most major world economies had allowed their currencies to float freely against the dollar. It was a rocky transition, characterized by plummeting stock prices, skyrocketing oil prices, bank failures and inflation (Stephey, 2008). However you spin it, Bretton Woods established the United States...
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...The Bretton Woods System : 1946- 1971 The Bretton Woods System (BWS) was implemented in 1946 under the Bretton Woods Agreement, each government obliged to maintain a fixed exchange rate for its currency vis-à-vis the dollar or gold. As one ounce of gold was set equal to $35, fixing a currency’s gold price was equivalent to setting its exchange rate relative to the dollar. The fixed exchange rates were maintained by official intervention in the foreign exchange markets. This intervention was about purchases and sales of dollars by foreign central banks against their own currencies whenever the supply and demand conditions in the market deviate from the agreed on par values. Any dollars acquired by the monetary authorities in the process of an intervention could then be exchanged for gold at the U.S Treasury. In principle, the stability of exchange rates removed uncertainty from international trade and investment transactions. Normally, if a country followed its own policies leading to a higher inflation rate than its trading partners would experience a balance of payments deficit as its good became more expensive, which means its exports will decrease. A deficit has consequences, an increase in the supply of the deficit country’s currency on the foreign exchange markets. The excess supply would demoralize the exchange value of the currency of that country, forcing its authorities to intervene. The nation would be required to buy with its reserves the excess supply of its own...
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...T H E I N T E R N AT I O N A L M O N E TA R Y S Y S T E M AGENDA • Definition • History • Fixed Vs. Floating • Coalitions • Roadmap • Q&A DEFINITION • Sets of internationally agreed rules, conventions and supporting institutions, that facilitate international trade, cross border investment and generally the reallocation of capital between nation states. H I S T O R Y O F T H E M O N E TA R Y S Y S T E M Gold Standard 1870 1944 Nixon Shock 1971 1976 Bretton Woods Jamaica Agreement T H E G O L D S TA N D A R D T H E G O L D S TA N D A R D • When International trade was limited in volume, payment for goods purchased from another country was made in gold or silver. • As the volume of international trade expanded in the wake of the Industrial Revolution, a more convenient means of financing international trade was needed. T H E G O L D S TA N D A R D • The solution adopted was to arrange for payment in paper currency and for governments to agree to convert the paper currency into gold on demand at a fixed rate. = T H E G O L D S TA N D A R D • 1880: Most of the world’s trading nations including Great Britain, Germany, Japan, and USA adopted the Gold Standard. • Given the Gold Standard, the value of any currency in units of any other currency was easy to determine. T H E G O L D S TA N D A R D • The Gold Standard acts as an adjustment mechanism, which achieves the Balance-of-Trade Equilibrium...
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...framework within which a) international payments are made. b) movement of capital is accommodated. c) exchange rates among currencies are determined. d) all of the above Answer: d) 2. Corporations today are operating in an environment in which exchange rate changes may adversely affect their competitive positions in the marketplace. This situation, in turn, makes it necessary for many firms to a) carefully manage their exchange risk exposure. b) carefully measure their exchange risk exposure. c) both a) and b) Answer: c) 3. The international monetary system went through several distinct stages of evolution. These stages are summarized, in alphabetic order, as follows: (i)- Bimetallism (ii)- Bretton Woods system (iii)- Classical gold standard (iv)- Flexible exchange rate regime (v)- Interwar period The chronological order that they actually occurred is: a) (iii), (i), (iv), (ii), and (v) b) (i), (iii), (v), (ii), and (iv) c) (vi), (i), (iii), (ii), and (v) d) (v), (ii), (i), (iii), and (iv) Answer: b) Bimetallism: Before 1875 4. In the United States, bimetallism was adopted by the Coinage Act of 1792 and remained a legal standard until 1873, a) when Congress dropped the silver dollar from the list of coins to be...
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...What was the Bretton Woods system? Outline its main pillars and discuss to what extent, if any, its architecture led to both post-war stability and prosperity in the developed world throughout capitalism’s ‘golden age’ “50 Years is Enough” In the final months of the Second world war, an architecture of stability for the international economy emerged. The United States and Britain, having already committed to each other with the signing of Mutual Aid Agreement(1941)1, vied to create a multilateral economic system to replace the international gold standard and its structural rigidity. The Bretton Woods agreement of 1944 established a dollar-gold standard of fixed, but adjustable, exchange rates of $US35 an ounce2. Which, according to Milton Friedman, “carried within it the seeds of its own destruction”3. The Institutions of neo-liberal global economic governance4, were formed; International Monetary Fund, & International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The Twin Pillars of post-war order5, an “economic super-government”6 essentially adopting both; U.S. Inflation rates.7 and US political policies8. There has been no country in history that has emerged from war into such happy economic circumstances as the United States in 19459. General Maximum Price Regulation(1942) was signed after the attack on Pearl Harbour, controlling most prices beneath a price ceiling until '46, and imposing penalties on violations. In addition to a comprehensive ration system. In order to maximise...
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...The Bretton Woods Agreement After World War I most countries wanted to return to the old financial security and stable situation of pre-war times as soon as possible. Discussions about a return to the gold standard began and by 1926 and all leading economies had re-established the system, according to which every nation’s circulating money had to be backed by reserves of gold and foreign currencies to a certain extent. But several mistakes in implementing the gold standard (mainly that a weakened Great Britain had to take the leading part and that a number of main currencies where over- or undervalued) led to a collapse of the economic and financial relations, peaking in the Great Depression in 1929. Every single country tried to increase the competitiveness of its export products in order to reduce its payment balance deficit by deflating its currency. This strategy only led to success as long as a country was deflating faster and more strongly than all other nations. This fact resulted in an international deflation competition that caused mass unemployment, bankruptcy of enterprises, the failing of credit institutions, as well as hyper inflations in the countries concerned. In the 1930s several conferences dealing with the world monetary problems caused by the Great Depression had ended in failure. But after World War II the need for a stabilizing system that avoided the mistakes, which had been made earlier, became evident. Plans were made for an innovative...
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...Abstract This paper shall discuss the Gold Standard, the Bretton Woods System and the European Exchange Rate Mechanism with a view to analysing their respective advantages and disadvantages; along with the circumstances surrounding their emergence and failure. Through this lens the author intends to draw comparisons between the current EMU and the Gold Standard and any implications these similarities have Introduction A prerequisite to any discussion on this topic is an understanding of certain classical and neo-classical analytical frameworks. Therefore section one will briefly present and explain the logic of Hume’s Mechanism and the ‘Impossible Trinity.’ Section Two outlines a chronological history of various exchange rate mechanisms along with their corresponding successes and failures. Section three draws parallels between the Gold Standard and the European Monetary Union and discusses the consequences of these similarities. Section One: Analytical Frameworks Hume’s Mechanism: This theory combines aspects of the purchasing power parity and interest rate parity conditions. It states that as the monetary base (M) increases domestic prices trend upwards. This induces a nation to import more goods than it exports, creating a current account deficit. This deficit gradually causes gold to leave the system, causing prices to revert back to their original levels- producing a balanced current account. This process in the goods markets is far slower than the complimentary...
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... c. Refers to a loss of confidence in the banking system that leads to a run on banks, as individuals withdraw their deposits d. Is a situation in which consumer spending patterns significantly affect a country's balance of payments, thereby affecting its currency 3. A _____ means the value of the currency is fixed relative to a reference currency. a. Fixed exchange rate b. Floating exchange rate c. Pegged exchange rate d. Dynamic exchange rate 4. A fixed exchange rate regime a. Leads to a situation where governments under political pressures expand monetary supply too rapidly, causing unacceptably high price inflation b. Modeled along the lines of the Bretton Woods system will not work c. Is characterized by speculation that adds to the uncertainty surrounding future currency movements d. Allows each country to choose its own inflation rate 5. A banking crisis a. Refers to a loss of confidence in the banking system that leads to a run on banks, as individuals withdraw their deposits...
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...By the 1970's the unsustainability if the Bretton Woods System became increasingly apparent. Evaluate the factors which led to the collapse of the Bretton Woods System and its impact on the subsequent evolution of the international political economy. With World War II rapidly coming toward an end, there was a global fear. A fear that the world was going to return to the economic protectionism that led the world economy to the brink of collapse in the 1930's. A new global political system needed to be formed, with the Allies, most importantly America, leading the way. As Robert Skidelsky(2004) puts it in his biography of John Maynard Keynes the U.S wanted to 'destroy Britain’s pre-war financial and trading system, based on the sterling area and imperial preference' and create a new monetary order to regulate the worlds economy. So on the 1st of July 1944, 44 Allied nations met for the Bretton Woods conference, during which the new neo-liberal policies were formed in order to open markets and lower trade barriers and movement of capital. The bretton woods system had three main features- fixed exchange rates(”par values” agreed with the international monetary fund and changed only in consultation with it); currencies that were freely converitble into each other or into gold; and freedom from exchange restrictions, at least on current payments. Controls on capital movements were permitted (Garritsen de Vrie, M. n.d) The Bretton Woods system had two governing bodies, the IMF which...
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...ISCOR 300 Spring 2014 Tuesday 4:00-6:00pm Exam Study Guide IDs: You should be able to identify major terms, concepts, events, and people. A good ID response requires that you state who or what it is, AND its significance in the context of the course (how, why important? The so what question). Study suggestion: go through the readings and video, lecture, and discussion notes; make an extended list of potential candidates (20-25). Choose 10-15 to concentrate and focus on in relation to what a good ID should be. YOU WILL HAVE A LARGE NUMBER OF IDs TO CHOOSE FROM, 5 out of 10-12. Each ID will be worth 10 points, for a total of 50 points. FOR EXAMPLE, in a class dealing with international security, an ID for Aum Shinrikyo would be as follows: Aum Shinrikyo was an apocalyptic Japanese religious cult that released sarin nerve gas in the Tokyo subway in 1995, killing 12 and injuring over 5,000. The ultimate goal of the cult was to bring about chaos on an international scale culminating in a nuclear war, as a means of ushering in the apocalypse. The 1995 attack was an effort to test methods of dispersing chemical weapons, a step towards achieving that goal. Significance: Aum Shinrikyo was the first non-state actor to successfully carry out a large-scale chemical weapon attack against civilians. The cult illustrates a new face of terrorism, post-modern terrorism. Post-modern terrorism is defined as groups without specific political or sub-national...
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...The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) was established on May 17th 1930. The BIS is a result of an intergovernmental agreement by Germany, Belgium, France, the UK, Italy, Japan, the United States and Switzerland. The BIS is composed of 60 central banks, which represents nations from around the globe that together make up around 95% of the world’s GDP. When the BIS was established it was responsible for the collection, administration and distribution of reparations from Germany, like it was agreed in the Treaty of Versailles. Between the 1970s and 80s, the BIS was also responsible for monitoring cross border capital flows as a result of the oil and debt crisis. One of the BIS’s purposes was to be some sort of emergency funder to nations that couldn’t provide for themselves anymore or were in some sort of financial trouble. Its mission is to help central banks become more stable, to act as banks for those 60 central banks, and to also foster international cooperation in monetary and financial stability. The BIS has also served as a trustee and agent for the European monetary System back when Europe was trying to have a single currency. The BIS has had many purposes throughout its existence, but its main focus has always been to maintain global financial stability. The BIS has had some major accomplishments. One of which is when it came to rescue Mexico in 1982 and Brazil in 1998 in their debt crisis. The BIS has helped many countries in time of need. They also helped...
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...Chapter 1 An Overview of International Business International business – business transactions between parties from more than one country. The global economy – an economy in which national borders are irrelevant The global manager – The early era of international business – Basic Forms of Global Business Activities Exporting and Importing Exporting – the selling of products made in one’s own country for use or resale in other countries. Importing – the buying of products made in other countries for use or resale in one’s own country. Merchandise exports and imports (visible trade) – such as clothing, computers, and raw materials. Service exports and imports (invisible trade) – such as banking, travel, and accounting activities. International Investments Foreign direct investments (FDI) – investments made for the purpose of actively controlling property, assets, or companies located in host countries. Foreign portfolio investments (FPI) – purchases of foreign financial assets (stocks, bonds, and certificates of deposit) for a purpose other than control. Home country – the country in which the parent company’s headquarters is located. Host country – any other country in which the company operates. Other Forms of International Business Activity International licensing – a contractual arrangement in which a firm in one country licenses the use of its intellectual property (patents, trademarks, brand names, copyrights, or trade secrets) to a firm in a...
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...world's leading nations met at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, in 1944 to create a new international monetary system. The representatives had decided to link the world currencies to the dollar since the United States accounted for over half of the world's manufacturing capacity and held most of the world's gold during that time. At the final, they agreed should be convertible into gold at $35 per ounce. What is Bretton Woods System? The Bretton Woods system is often refer to the international monetary regime that prevailed from the end of World War II until 1971. The origin of the name is from the site of the 1944 conference that had created the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. According to the history, the Bretton Woods system was the first example of a fully negotiated monetary order intended to govern currency relations among sovereign states. In principle, the regime was designed to combine binding legal obligations with multilateral decision-making conducted through an international organization -- the IMF, endowed with limited supranational authority. In practice the initial scheme, as well as its subsequent development and ultimate demise, were directly dependent on the preferences and policies of its most powerful member -- the United States. The International Monetary Fund was officially established on 27th December 1945, when the 29 nations who had participated in the conference of Bretton Woods signed the Articles of Agreement. It commenced its financial...
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...Global Governance Governance is a process or all processes of governing. It is mainly undertaken by a market, hierarchy (government) and network. It is undertaken over a family, tribe, formal or informal organization or territory. It needs laws, norms, power or language. Governance relates to “the processes of interaction and decision-making among the actors involved in a collective problem that lead to the creation, reinforcement, or reproduction of social norms and institutions. Although government may be involved in governance, it is possible to have ‘governance without government’. Global governance is a broad, dynamic and complex process of interactive decision-making at the global level. Global governance refers to the processes through which international affairs are coordinated. Global Governance or world governance is a movement towards political integration of transnational actors aimed at negotiating responses to problems that affect more than one state or region. It tends to involve institutionalization. These institutions of global governance_the United Nations, the International Criminal Court, the World Bank, etc,._tend to have limited or demarcated power to enforce compliance. The modern question of world governance exists in the context of globalization and globalizing regimes of power: politically, economically and culturally. In response to the acceleration of interdependence on a worldwide scale, both between human societies and between humankind and...
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...2013-2014 Degree on Management International Negotiation “The Bretton Woods Agreement [1944]” Luís Leite Teacher in Charge: Carmen Amado Mendes Index: “The Bretton Woods Agreement [1944]”........................................... 0 Luís Leite ............................................................................................ 0 1. Introduction ................................................................................ 2 2. Pre-Negotiation ........................................................................... 4 3. Negotiation before the final conference ................................... 11 4. Negotiation: The Bretton Woods Conference ........................... 15 5. Conclusion: Later changes and full analysis ............................. 19 6. Primary Sources and Bibliography ............................................ 22 7. Annexes: .................................................................................... 26 FEUC – Negociação Internacional – 2013-14 1 1. Introduction The United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference that occurred from the 1st of July to the 22nd in 1944 better known as the Bretton Woods conference gave origin to a ground-breaking system. It was the first time a fully negotiated monetary order came to existence which a new paradigm perspective on how to face economical international relations. This essay will help you understand why the Bretton Woods system happened, its historical context, why it worked throughout...
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