The Development of International Monetary Policy

This book is about the evolution of international monetary policy. It traces the development of monetary policy from the 18th century to present. Beyond the historical dimension, it provides the salient reasons for monetary policy choices as time progressed. The main themes in the historical spectrum are mercantilism, the Gold Standard and monetary policy rules, dollarization, currency boards, monetary unions, stagflation, monetary sovereignty, currency manipulation, the legal framework for currency valuation, and innovative monetary policies to deal with stabilization issues in the twentieth and twenty first centuries.

The Development of International Monetary Policy traces the development of international monetary policy from mercantilism to quantitative easing. It has been structured to present some of the pressing issues in international monetary relations involving currency valuation, inflation, exchange rates, and regional monetary policy. Additionally, it presents international monetary law as a basis for understanding the concept of monetary sovereignty and the limits of state autonomy in an interdependent world of legal arrangements.

The book revisits some controversial arguments about stagflation and expansionary monetary policy, and it uses current time series data and empirical evidence to show why theories about the trade-off between inflation and unemployment are not extinct. Part of the concluding argument indicates that it is imperative for the international community to have a structure for monetary dispute resolutions involving autonomous states. Notably, the author further concludes that fiat money will continue to be a dominant unit of account, more so than crypto-currencies, into the distant future.

An accessible and practical read, this is book is a valuable resource for postgraduates, academics and researchers of international trade, finance and economics.