The International Order of Asia in the 1930s and 1950s

The International Order of Asia in the 1930s and 1950s

Author: Nicholas J. White

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-03-03

Total Pages: 327

ISBN-13: 1317027191

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This book reconsiders the nature and formation of Asia's economic order during the 1930s and 1950s in light of the new historiographical developments in Britain and Japan. Recently several Japanese economic historians have offered a new perspective on Asian history, arguing that economic growth was fuelled by the phenomenon of intra-Asian trade which began to grow rapidly around the turn of the 19th-20th centuries. On the other side, British imperial historians, P.J. Cain and A.G. Hopkins, have presented their own interpretation of 'gentlemanly capitalism', in which they emphasize the leading role of the service sector rather than that of British industry in assessing the nature of the British presence overseas. In order to assess and test these new perspectives, this volume addresses three key issues. The first is to reconsider the metropolitan-peripheral relationship in Asia, focusing particularly on the role of the sterling area and its implications for Asian economic development. The second is to examine the formation of inter-regional trade relations within Asia in the 1930s and their revival and transformation in the 1950s. The final issue is the comparison of the international order of Asia of the 1930s with the 1950s, and the degree to which the Second World War represented a break-point in Asia's economic development. Dealing with issues of trade, economy, nationalism and imperialism, this book provides fresh insights into the development of Asia during the mid-twentieth century. Drawing on the latest scholarship it will prove invaluable to all who wish to better understand the position of countries such as Japan, China, India, Singapore, Malaysia and Korea within the wider international order.


The International Order of Asia in the 1930s and 1950s

The International Order of Asia in the 1930s and 1950s

Author: Dr Nicholas J White

Publisher: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.

Published: 2013-06-28

Total Pages: 489

ISBN-13: 1409480534

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This book reconsiders the nature and formation of Asia's economic order during the 1930s and 1950s in light of the new historiographical developments in Britain and Japan. Recently several Japanese economic historians have offered a new perspective on Asian history, arguing that economic growth was fuelled by the phenomenon of intra-Asian trade which began to grow rapidly around the turn of the 19th-20th centuries. On the other side, British imperial historians, P.J. Cain and A.G. Hopkins, have presented their own interpretation of 'gentlemanly capitalism', in which they emphasize the leading role of the service sector rather than that of British industry in assessing the nature of the British presence overseas. In order to assess and test these new perspectives, this volume addresses three key issues. The first is to reconsider the metropolitan-peripheral relationship in Asia, focusing particularly on the role of the sterling area and its implications for Asian economic development. The second is to examine the formation of inter-regional trade relations within Asia in the 1930s and their revival and transformation in the 1950s. The final issue is the comparison of the international order of Asia of the 1930s with the 1950s, and the degree to which the Second World War represented a break-point in Asia's economic development. Dealing with issues of trade, economy, nationalism and imperialism, this book provides fresh insights into the development of Asia during the mid-twentieth century. Drawing on the latest scholarship it will prove invaluable to all who wish to better understand the position of countries such as Japan, China, India, Singapore, Malaysia and Korea within the wider international order.


The Transformation of the International Order of Asia

The Transformation of the International Order of Asia

Author: Shigeru Akita

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-07-25

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 131769483X

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In Asia the 1950s were dominated by political decolonization and the emergence of the Cold War system, and newly independent countries were able to utilize the transformed balance of power for their own economic development through economic and strategic aid programmes. This book examines the interconnections between the transfer of power and state governance in Asia, the emergence of the Cold War, and the transfer of hegemony from the UK to the US, by focusing specifically on the historical roles of international economic aid and the autonomous response from Asian nation states in the immediate post-war context. The Transformation of the International Order of Asia offers closely interwoven perspectives on international economic and political relations from the 1950s to the 1960s, with specific focus on the Colombo Plan and related aid policies of the time. It shows how the plan served different purposes: Britain’s aim to reduce India’s wartime sterling balances in London; the quest for India’s economic independence under Jawaharlal Nehru; Japan’s regional economic assertion and its endeavour to improve its international status; Britain’s publicity policy during the reorganization of British aid policies at a time of economic crisis; and more broadly, the West’s desire to counter Soviet influence in Asia. In doing so, the chapters explore how international economic aid relations became reorganized in relation to the independent development of states in Asia during the period, and crucially, the role this transformation played in the emergence of a new international order in Asia. Drawing on a wide range of international contemporary and archival source materials, this book will be welcomed by students and scholars interested in Asian, international, and economic history, politics and development studies.


The International History of East Asia, 1900–1968

The International History of East Asia, 1900–1968

Author: Antony Best

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2009-12-18

Total Pages: 218

ISBN-13: 1135181675

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Constituting an impressive account of key themes in the international history of East Asia from 1900 to 1968, this book is an important contribution to the interpretive study of this crucial period of history. It offers economic, political and strategic perspectives and with a particular focus on Anglo-Japanese relations.


Oil Crises of the 1970s and the Transformation of International Order

Oil Crises of the 1970s and the Transformation of International Order

Author: Shigeru Akita

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2023-12-14

Total Pages: 281

ISBN-13: 135041381X

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The 1970s are widely seen as a turning point for the world economy and a transformative decade for the international order. This volume explores the role played by the oil crises in this transformation, focusing particularly on their impact in previously little-studied regions such as Asia and Africa. Examining the intersection between the oil crises and the Third World project, their impact on Asian economic development and the contrasting responses of two African countries, this collection covers new ground on the global and regional effects of the crises, and ties them into the key transformations of the international economy and the Cold War order. Arguing that they were instrumental in reshaping the Asian economies, helping to instigate the boom known as the 'East Asian Miracle', it also demonstrates how the individual responses of countries reflected their own specific circumstances. With chapters from leading scholars such as David Painter and Dane Kennedy, this book shows how the origins, course and consequences of the oil crises of the 1970s are crucial to understanding the transformation of the international order in the late twentieth century.


Commodities, Ports and Asian Maritime Trade Since 1750

Commodities, Ports and Asian Maritime Trade Since 1750

Author: Anthony Webster

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2015-10-13

Total Pages: 334

ISBN-13: 1137463929

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This book examines the role of mercantile networks in linking Asian economies to the global economy. It contains fourteen contributions on East, Southeast and South Asia covering the period from 1750 to the present.


Banking in China (1890s–1940s)

Banking in China (1890s–1940s)

Author: Hubert Bonin

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-04-08

Total Pages: 321

ISBN-13: 1000054454

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From the 1890s to the 1940s, French State and entrepreneurial companies were enticed to promote French interests, beyond mere colonial targets, for the sake of economic patriotism. Chinese concessions, not including Hong Kong, were thus inserted into geo-economic moves, and French stakeholders asserted their philosophy of competition, and displayed their means of influence and investment. In this book, the author assesses the challenges which confronted French actors in the face of powerful British imperial action overseas, all the more so because German Belgian, Japanese, and then also North-American competitors joined the fray. The book targets three concessions: Canton/Guangzhou, Tientsin/Tianjin, and Hankeou/Wuhan because of their significance in the emergence of a modern economy in the country. The three main sections of the book explore the position of French stakeholders, mainly businessmen, merchant houses, bankers, and a few industrialists, in these three port-cities and China overall. The chapters gauge their capital of influence and networking, commercial tools, and banking skills in the face of competition, the hardships of crossing the changes in economic productive systems or clusters in the various port-cities and their areas, rich with commercial offshoots. Also, several chapters underscore the uncertainties caused by geopolitical and military events in China. For each of the three concessions, commercial and banking systems, assessments of the successes and limits of the French bankers and merchants are investigated, with the aim of evaluating the reality of French entrepreneurialism and power in the regions prospected by the offshoots of French capitalism. The book will be an invaluable resource for academics interested in the history of banking and finance, business, entrepreneurship, colonialism and "economic patriotism" in Chinese history, in geo-economics and in connected history.


Promises and Predicaments

Promises and Predicaments

Author: Alicia Schrikker

Publisher: NUS Press

Published: 2015-03-30

Total Pages: 350

ISBN-13: 997169851X

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Indonesia’s trajectory towards successful economic growth has been long and capricious. Studies of the process often focus either on the Netherlands Indies or independent Indonesia, suggesting the existence of fundamental discontinuities. The authors of the 17 essays in this book adopt a long-term perspective that transcends regimes and bridges dualist economic models in order to examine what did and did not change as the country moved across the colonial-postcolonial divide, and shifted from reliance on exports of primary products to a multi-centred economy. The aim is to analyse how economic development grew out of the interplay of foreign trade, new forms of entrepreneurship and the political economy. The authors deal with entrepreneurship and economic specialization within different ethnic groups, the geographical distribution of exports and resource drains from exporting regions, and connections between an export economy and mass poverty. One recurring issue is the way actors from different ethnic groups occupied complementary niches, highlighting the rich variety of roles played by Asian entrepreneurs. A study of the international sugar trade shows how regime change fostered co-operation between different ethnic groups and nationalities involved with trading networks, inter-island shipping, urban public transport, and the construction sector. A comparison of export earnings and population groups involved in trade before and after 1900 shows that unexpected agricultural and industrial transitions could underpin a fundamental shift in income growth, with improved living standards for broad sectors of the population.


British Imperialism

British Imperialism

Author: P.J. Cain

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-03-02

Total Pages: 794

ISBN-13: 1317389255

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A milestone in the understanding of British history and imperialism, this ground-breaking book radically reinterprets the course of modern economic development and the causes of overseas expansion during the past three centuries. Employing their concept of 'gentlemanly capitalism', the authors draw imperial and domestic British history together to show how the shape of the nation and its economy depended on international and imperial ties, and how these ties were undone to produce the post-colonial world of today. Containing a significantly expanded and updated Foreword and Afterword, this third edition assesses the development of the debate since the book’s original publication, discusses the imperial era in the context of the controversy over globalization, and shows how the study of the age of empires remains relevant to understanding the post-colonial world. Covering the full extent of the British empire from China to South America and taking a broad chronological view from the seventeenth century to post-imperial Britain today, British Imperialism: 1688–2015 is the perfect read for all students of imperial and global history.


Negotiating China's Destiny in World War II

Negotiating China's Destiny in World War II

Author: Hans van de Ven

Publisher: Stanford University Press

Published: 2014-12-03

Total Pages: 332

ISBN-13: 0804793115

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Negotiating China's Destiny explains how China developed from a country that hardly mattered internationally into the important world power it is today. Before World War II, China had suffered through five wars with European powers as well as American imperial policies resulting in economic, military, and political domination. This shifted dramatically during WWII, when alliances needed to be realigned, resulting in the evolution of China's relationships with the USSR, the U.S., Britain, France, India, and Japan. Based on key historical archives, memoirs, and periodicals from across East Asia and the West, this book explains how China was able to become one of the Allies with a seat on the Security Council, thus changing the course of its future. Breaking with U.S.-centered analyses which stressed the incompetence of Chinese Nationalist diplomacy, Negotiating China's Destiny makes the first sustained use of the diaries of Chiang Kai-shek (which have only become available in the last few years) and who is revealed as instrumental in asserting China's claims at this pivotal point. Negotiating China's Destiny demonstrates that China's concerns were far broader than previously acknowledged and that despite the country's military weakness, it pursued its policy of enhancing its international stature, recovering control over borderlands it had lost to European imperialism in the nineteenth and early twentieth century, and becoming recognized as an important allied power with determination and success.