High growth, rising inequalities, worsening poverty

Sample

Fred Campano, Dominick Salvatore

Income Distribution was written primarily as a textbook intended for undergraduate economics majors. The material, however, is treated with sufficient rigor to meet the needs of first year graduate students also. The book may also serve the needs of sociologists and political scientists who are primarily interested in the related social justice topics of income inequality and poverty. Each chapter is logically connected with the preceding chapters, providing a general overview of income distribution and its applications.

Sample

Pan A. Yotopoulos

Exchange Rate Parity for Trade and Development: Theory, Tests, and Case Studies extends recent theories of incomplete markets to investigate empirically the appropriate balance between market and state in trade relations between developed and developing countries. Yotopoulos concludes that government intervention in foreign exchange and trade is necessary in developing countries in the early stages of development and inevitably decreases as development progresses. More specifically, free currency markets are shown to have an inherent distortion that leads under-developed countries to misallocate resources systematically. Rationing of foreign exchange prevents a "soft-currency distortion" that commonly afflicts developing countries and can turn comparative-advantage trade into competitive-devaluation trade, with severe losses of income and welfare. It is found that the level of under-development narrowly circumscribes and conditions the extent to which free-market, free-trade, laissez-faire policies can be beneficial to developing countries, which is contrary to the mainstream policy paradigm as currently applied. The analysis and tests draw on empirical research in 70 countries to confirm the usefulness and validity of the theoretical framework. The book concludes with extended case studies of Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Uruguay and with relevant policy recommendations.

Sample

Takatoshi Ito and Anne O. Krueger

The contributors to this volume analyze the growth experiences of Japan, Korea, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan in light of the recently developed endogenous growth theory to provide an understanding of the economic boom in East Asia. The theory explored in this volume attributes the phenomenal economic success of these countries to, among other factors, the role of an outward orientation - a focus on exporting rather than on protecting home markets. In addition, the importance of exchange rate behavior, of the supportive role of government policy, and of the accumulation and promotion of physical and human capital are explored in detail. This collection also makes significant contributions to recent work examining the extent to which growth in each country became self-sustaining once it began. This fourth volume in the NBER-East Asia Seminar on Economics series demonstrates the relevance of endogenous growth theory for studying this important region and will be invaluable for economists and for those interested in East Asian affairs.

Sample

Tom Streissguth

"Examines immigration in the United States, including the history of U.S. immigration and the debate over immigration reforms, laws, and policies"--Provided by publisher.