The Cambridge Economic History of Latin America: Volume 2, The Long Twentieth Century

The Cambridge Economic History of Latin America: Volume 2, The Long Twentieth Century PDF

Author: Victor Bulmer-Thomas

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2006-01-23

Total Pages: 83

ISBN-13: 1139449524

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Volume Two treats the 'long twentieth century' from the onset of modern economic growth to the present. It analyzes the principal dimensions of Latin America's first era of sustained economic growth from the last decades of the nineteenth century to 1930. It explores the era of inward-looking development from the 1930s to the collapse of import-substituting industrialization and the return to strategies of globalization in the 1980s. Finally, it looks at the long term trends in capital flows, agriculture and the environment.

Good, Bad, and Ugly Colonial Activities: Studying Development across the Americas

Good, Bad, and Ugly Colonial Activities: Studying Development across the Americas PDF

Author: Miriam Bruhn

Publisher: World Bank Publications

Published: 2008

Total Pages: 58

ISBN-13:

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Abstract: Levels of economic development vary widely within countries in the Americas. This paper argues that part of this variation has its roots in the colonial era. Colonizers engaged in different economic activities in different regions of a country, depending on local conditions. Some activities were "bad" in the sense that they depended heavily on the exploitation of labor and created extractive institutions, while "good" activities created inclusive institutions. The authors show that areas with bad colonial activities have lower gross domestic product per capita today than areas with good colonial activities. Areas with high pre-colonial population density also do worse today. In particular, the positive effect of "good" activities goes away in areas with high pre-colonial population density. The analysis attributes this to the "ugly" fact that colonizers used the pre-colonial population as an exploitable resource. The intermediating factor between history and current development appears to be institutional differences across regions and not income inequality or the current ethnic composition of the population.

Early Latin America

Early Latin America PDF

Author: James Lockhart

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 1983-09-30

Total Pages: 492

ISBN-13: 9780521299299

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A brief general history of Latin America in the period between the European conquest and the independence of the Spanish American countries and Brazil serves as an introduction to this quickly changing field of study.

The British Textile Trade in South America in the Nineteenth Century

The British Textile Trade in South America in the Nineteenth Century PDF

Author: Manuel Llorca-Jaña

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2012-06-18

Total Pages: 409

ISBN-13: 1139510843

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This is the first work on British textile exports to South America during the nineteenth century. During this period, textiles ranked among the most important manufactures traded in the world market and Britain was the foremost producer. Thanks to new data, this book demonstrates that British exports to South America were transacted at very high rates during the first decades after independence. This development was due to improvements in the packing of textiles; decreasing costs of production and introduction of free trade in Britain; falling ocean freight rates, marine insurance and import duties in South America; dramatic improvements in communications; and the introduction of better port facilities. Manuel Llorca-Jaña explores the marketing chain of textile exports to South America and sheds light on South Americans' consumer behaviour. This book contains the most comprehensive database on Anglo-South American trade during the nineteenth century and fills an important gap in the historiography.

The Economic History of Latin America Since Independence

The Economic History of Latin America Since Independence PDF

Author: V. Bulmer-Thomas

Publisher:

Published: 1994

Total Pages: 520

ISBN-13:

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The Economic History of Latin America seeks to explain why the region has failed to achieve developed status. Taking its narrative from the end of the colonial epoch to the early 1990s, this book provides a comprehensive, balanced portrait of the factors affecting economic progress in Latin America.

Understanding Long-Run Economic Growth

Understanding Long-Run Economic Growth PDF

Author: Dora L. Costa

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2011-08-10

Total Pages: 401

ISBN-13: 0226116425

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The conditions for sustainable growth and development are among the most debated topics in economics, and the consensus is that institutions matter greatly in explaining why some economies are more successful than others over time. Probing the long-term effects of early colonial differences on immigration policy, land distribution, and financial development in a variety of settings, Understanding Long-Run Economic Growth explores the relationship between economic conditions, growth, and inequality, with a focus on how the monopolization of resources by the political elite limits incentives for ordinary people to invest in human capital or technological discovery. Among the topics discussed are the development of credit markets in France, the evolution of transportation companies in the United Kingdom and the United States, and the organization of innovation in the United States.

Has Latin America Always Been Unequal?

Has Latin America Always Been Unequal? PDF

Author: Ewout Frankema

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2009-06-02

Total Pages: 312

ISBN-13: 9047429354

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The forces of industrialisation, urbanisation, globalisation and technological change have washed away the pre-modern outlook of most Latin American economies. Despite the improved opportunities of social mobility offered by economic modernisation, current income inequality levels (still) appear extraordinary high. Has Latin America always been unequal? Did the region fail to settle a longstanding account with its colonial past? Or should we be reluctant to point our finger so far back in time? In a comparative study of asset and income distribution Frankema shows that both the levels, and nature, of income inequality have changed significantly since 1870. Besides the deep historical roots of land and educational inequality, more recent demographic and political-institutional forces are taken on board to understand Latin America’s distributive dynamics in the long twentieth century.