Growth Divergences
Growth Divergences

Author: Jose Antonio Ocampo

Publisher: Zed Books

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 388

ISBN-13:

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Unlike the 1950s and 1960s, when the rising tide of economic growth lifted most economies, the last three decades have been characterized by a paradox of greater international economic integration as well as divergent economic growth performances. The growing North-South gap of the last two centuries has been moderated recently by the better economic performance of China, India and others in East Asia, implying the expansion of the 'middle income' category. This volume of analytical studies seeks to explain these major differences in economic performance in recent decades by considering the dynamics of international economic growth, diverging growth rates, economic structures, and sources of demand, successes and collapses in the developing world, and recent episodes of real income stagnation of countries. Several chapters critically review recent misleading claims and the conventional wisdom regarding the relationship of trade liberalization, financial development, development, aid, infrastructure spending, violent conflict, good governance, and industrial policy to economic growth.

The Great Divergence
The Great Divergence

Author: Timothy Noah

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2012-04-24

Total Pages: 273

ISBN-13: 1608196348

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For the past three decades, America has steadily become a nation of haves and have-nots. Our incomes are increasingly unequal. This steady growing apart is often mentioned as a troubling indicator by scholars and policy analysts, though seldom addressed by politicians. What economics Nobelist Paul Krugman terms "the Great Divergence" has till now been treated as little more than a talking point, a rhetorical club to be wielded in ideological battles. But this Great Divergence may be the most important change in this country during our lifetimes-a drastic, elemental change in the character of American society, and not at all for the better. The inequality gap is much more than a left-right hot potato-its causes and consequences call for a patient, non-partisan exploration. Timothy Noah's The Great Divergence, based on his award-winning series of articles for Slate, surveys the roots of the wealth gap, drawing on the best thinking of contemporary economists and political scientists. Noah also explores potential solutions to the problem, and explores why the growing rich-poor divide has sparked remarkably little public anger, in contrast to social unrest that prevailed before the New Deal. The Great Divergence is poised to be one of the most talked-about books of 2012, a jump-start to the national conversation about the shape of American society in the 21st century, and a work that will help frame the debate in a Presidential election year.

Global Economic History: A Very Short Introduction
Global Economic History: A Very Short Introduction

Author: Robert C. Allen

Publisher: OUP Oxford

Published: 2011-09-15

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 019162053X

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Why are some countries rich and others poor? In 1500, the income differences were small, but they have grown dramatically since Columbus reached America. Since then, the interplay between geography, globalization, technological change, and economic policy has determined the wealth and poverty of nations. The industrial revolution was Britain's path breaking response to the challenge of globalization. Western Europe and North America joined Britain to form a club of rich nations by pursuing four polices-creating a national market by abolishing internal tariffs and investing in transportation, erecting an external tariff to protect their fledgling industries from British competition, banks to stabilize the currency and mobilize domestic savings for investment, and mass education to prepare people for industrial work. Together these countries pioneered new technologies that have made them ever richer. Before the Industrial Revolution, most of the world's manufacturing was done in Asia, but industries from Casablanca to Canton were destroyed by western competition in the nineteenth century, and Asia was transformed into 'underdeveloped countries' specializing in agriculture. The spread of economic development has been slow since modern technology was invented to fit the needs of rich countries and is ill adapted to the economic and geographical conditions of poor countries. A few countries - Japan, Soviet Russia, South Korea, Taiwan, and perhaps China - have, nonetheless, caught up with the West through creative responses to the technological challenge and with Big Push industrialization that has achieved rapid growth through investment coordination. Whether other countries can emulate the success of East Asia is a challenge for the future. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Economic Convergence and Divergence in Europe
Economic Convergence and Divergence in Europe

Author: Gertrude Tumpel-Gugerell

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 2003-01-01

Total Pages: 498

ISBN-13: 9781781951286

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Recoge : 1. Introductory session. - 2. Past convergence within the European Union. - 3. Accesion countries : achievements in real convergence. - 4. Accesion countries : how to balance real and nominal convergence challenges for monetary and exchange rate policy. - 5. Does the financial sector contribute to real growth? - 6. Is there somebody left out in the cold? prospects of CEE countries other than current accesion countries. - 7. Policy challenges within the (enlarged) EU : how to foster economic convergence?

China
China

Author:

Publisher: Washington, D.C. : World Bank

Published: 1992

Total Pages: 182

ISBN-13:

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Both as an accompaniment of overall economic growth and also through a strong commitment to improving standards of education, health and nutrition for all, China has compiled an impressive record in reducing absolute poverty over the last four decades. Perhaps the most telling indicator of the improvement in the overall well-being of the Chinese population is the increase in expectation of life at birth, which nearly doubled from 34 years in the early 1950s to 67 years at present. Other indicators of social development also document tremendous improvement. The crude death rate and infant mortality rate both declined by about three-quarters since the early 1950s, and illiteracy is estimated to have dropped from 80% of the adult population in the early 1950s to about 30% at present. Average per capita availability of food energy increased by nearly 40%, from about 90% of food requirements in the early 1950s to 115% by the late 1980s. These indicators of social development in China compare favorably with the estimates for India, Indonesia, Brazil, and the averages for other low and middle income countries.

Before and Beyond Divergence
Before and Beyond Divergence

Author: Jean-Laurent Rosenthal

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2011-04

Total Pages: 291

ISBN-13: 0674057910

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Why did sustained economic growth arise in Europe rather than in China? The authors combine economic theory and historical evidence to argue that political processes drove the economic divergence between the two world regions, with continued consequences today that become clear in this innovative account.

Great Divergence and Great Convergence
Great Divergence and Great Convergence

Author: Leonid Grinin

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2015-05-09

Total Pages: 261

ISBN-13: 331917780X

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This new monograph provides a stimulating new take on hotly contested topics in world modernization and the globalizing economy. It begins by situating what is called the Great Divergence--the social/technological revolution that led European nations to outpace the early dominance of Asia--in historical context over centuries. This is contrasted with an equally powerful Great Convergence, the recent economic and technological expansion taking place in Third World nations and characterized by narrowing inequity among nations. They are seen here as two phases of an inevitable global process, centuries in the making, with the potential for both positive and negative results. This sophisticated presentation examines: Why the developing world is growing more rapidly than the developed world. How this development began occurring under the Western world's radar. How former colonies of major powers grew to drive the world's economy. Why so many Western economists have been slow to recognize the Great Convergence. The increasing risk of geopolitical instability. Why the world is likely to find itself without an absolute leader after the end of the American hegemony A work of rare scope, Great Divergence and Great Convergence gives sociologists, global economists, demographers, and global historians a deeper understanding of the broader movement of social and economic history, combined with a long view of history as it is currently being made; it also offers some thrilling forecasts for global development in the forthcoming decades.

The Great Divergence
The Great Divergence

Author: Kenneth Pomeranz

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2021-04-13

Total Pages: 404

ISBN-13: 0691217181

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A landmark comparative history of Europe and China that examines why the Industrial Revolution emerged in the West The Great Divergence sheds light on one of the great questions of history: Why did sustained industrial growth begin in Northwest Europe? Historian Kenneth Pomeranz shows that as recently as 1750, life expectancy, consumption, and product and factor markets were comparable in Europe and East Asia. Moreover, key regions in China and Japan were no worse off ecologically than those in Western Europe, with each region facing corresponding shortages of land-intensive products. Pomeranz’s comparative lens reveals the two critical factors resulting in Europe's nineteenth-century divergence—the fortunate location of coal and access to trade with the New World. As East Asia’s economy stagnated, Europe narrowly escaped the same fate largely due to favorable resource stocks from underground and overseas. This Princeton Classics edition includes a preface from the author and makes a powerful historical work available to new readers.

Asia-Africa Development Divergence
Asia-Africa Development Divergence

Author: David Henley

Publisher: Zed Books Ltd.

Published: 2015-02-12

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 1783602805

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Why have South-East Asian countries like Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam been so successful in reducing levels of absolute poverty, while in African countries like Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania, despite recent economic growth, most people are still almost as poor as they were half a century ago? This book presents a simple, radical explanation for the great divergence in development performance between Asia and Africa: the absence in most parts of Africa, and the presence in Asia, of serious developmental intent on the part of national political leaders.

Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries
Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2011-06-27

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13: 0309217105

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During the last 25 years, life expectancy at age 50 in the United States has been rising, but at a slower pace than in many other high-income countries, such as Japan and Australia. This difference is particularly notable given that the United States spends more on health care than any other nation. Concerned about this divergence, the National Institute on Aging asked the National Research Council to examine evidence on its possible causes. According to Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries, the nation's history of heavy smoking is a major reason why lifespans in the United States fall short of those in many other high-income nations. Evidence suggests that current obesity levels play a substantial part as well. The book reports that lack of universal access to health care in the U.S. also has increased mortality and reduced life expectancy, though this is a less significant factor for those over age 65 because of Medicare access. For the main causes of death at older ages-cancer and cardiovascular disease-available indicators do not suggest that the U.S. health care system is failing to prevent deaths that would be averted elsewhere. In fact, cancer detection and survival appear to be better in the U.S. than in most other high-income nations, and survival rates following a heart attack also are favorable. Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries identifies many gaps in research. For instance, while lung cancer deaths are a reliable marker of the damage from smoking, no clear-cut marker exists for obesity, physical inactivity, social integration, or other risks considered in this book. Moreover, evaluation of these risk factors is based on observational studies, which-unlike randomized controlled trials-are subject to many biases.