For a century, economists have promoted the hypothesis of globalization in financial institutions, labor markets, and trade. However, there have been continuous warnings that a global economy and free trade may not always be favorable. What are the pressures? What could be done about them?
Dani Rodrik examines history from its roots in the 17th century to the milestones of the gold standard, the Bretton Woods Agreement, and the Washington Consensus up to the present. Although economic globalization has allowed the advanced economy to enjoy unprecedented levels of wealth and has helped hundreds of millions of poor workers in China and elsewhere in Asia, he argues that it is a concept based on shaky pillars. Its long-term sustainability is not a given.
The heart of Rodrik's argument is a fundamental "trilemma": that we cannot simultaneously pursue democracy, national self-determination, and economic globalization. We give too much power to governments and have protectionism. We give markets too much freedom and have an unstable global economy with little social and political support from those it is supposed to help. Rodrik advocates smart globalization, not maximum globalization.
Pages: 370, Dimensions: 15.2x15.2cm
