Description
Money Meltdown examines the chaotic state of the international monetary system and explains why nations are destined to experience chronic turmoil in their currency relations unless glob- al order can somehow be restored. Without stable exchange rates, businesses bringing their goods to the inter- national marketplace must contend with unpredictable exchange rate fluctuations that can turn legitimately earned profits into currency losses. The value of money in today's system seems determined more by the frenzied actions of exchange market specula- tors than by any objective standard. Currency arrangements worked out secretly by politically motivated finance ministers are quickly over- whelmed by market forces. As exchange rate gyrations send domestic economies reeling, governments are increasingly tempted to resort to protectionist measures that could rupture international trade relations.
In Money Meltdown, Shelton argues that the only proper foundation for an open world economy dedicated to free trade is sound money. A sound international monetary regime, though requires that governments accept a universal standard of value and exercise fiscal discipline to preserve fixed exchange rates. Drawing on the legacy of the gold-based Bretton Woods system laid out in 1944, Money Meltdown presents a timely and compelling agenda for a new round of international monetary cooperation aimed at maximizing the potential for global prosperity in the era following the Cold War. Once again, Judy Shelton has warned of an imminent cri- sis and offers a blueprint for its resolution which is destined to be a book of major influence.
ISBN:9780029291122
