Monetary Theory And Policy From Hume And Smith To Wicksell

This book provides a comprehensive survey of the major developments in monetary theory and policy from David Hume and Adam Smith to Walter Bagehot and Knut Wicksell. In particular, it seeks to explain why it took so long for a theory of central banking to penetrate mainstream thought. The book investigates how major monetary theorists understood the roles of the invisible and visible hands in money, credit and banking; what they thought about rules and discretion and the role played by commodity-money in their conceptualizations; whether or not they distinguished between the two different roles carried out via the financial system - making payments efficiently within the exchange process and facilitating intermediation in the capital market; how they perceived the influence of the monetary system on macroeconomic aggregates such as the price level, output and accumulation of wealth; and finally, what they thought about monetary policy.

This book assesses major schools of thought in macroeconomic theory between the Great Depression and the Long Recession, focusing on their analysis of cycles, crises and macro-policy. It explores the road from the dominance of Keynesian ideas to those of New Classical Macroeconomics (NCM) toward the end of the millennium. The book covers the early influential work of Knut Wicksell; the economic debates of the 1930s, with core contributions from John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich von Hayek; the rise of Keynesianism in the 1950s and its decline since the 1970s; the rise of Monetarism in the 1960s; and NCM’s subsequent rise to prominence. Finally, the book outlines how macroeconomics has evolved from its birth in the 1930s as a theory separate from microeconomics, resulting in a split between macro- and micro-theories, and ended up with a new hegemonic paradigm based on microfoundations. The ensuing policy thinking witnessed a transformation from "active" macro-policy after the Great Depression to a far more "passive" macro-policy during the last quarter of the twentieth century, which may have contributed to missing the signs of the impending Long Recession of 2008. “When the 2008 crisis struck, macroeconomists were caught with models that were theoretically elegant yet inappropriate to the needs of the moment. A broader historical perspective may have prevented the jettisoning of Keynesian models that had proved useful in the past and might have done so again. This highly readable book by Arie Arnon is a wonderful antidote to economists’ short time horizon and contributes mightily to restore the profession’s “collective memory” of the diversity of ideas within macroeconomics.” Professor Dani Rodrik, Harvard Kennedy School

This book combines historical and policy-oriented perspectives on the relevance of the Keynesian approach for economic theory, policy, and crisis analysis. The first part focuses on historical, theoretical, and methodological issues, and puts them in context with current developments. The second part focuses on the application of the Keynesian approach to modeling the economy, policy-making, and analyzing the ongoing crisis of the early 21st century. Bringing together contributions by leading macroeconomists such as Laidler, Cukierman, Colander and Boyer, and leading historians of economics such as Hollander, Boianovsky, Marcuzzo, Dimand, Witztum, Young, deVroey and Arnon, the book offers a comprehensive overview of Keynesian economics today. One of the book’s most essential features are the commentaries on the papers, which promote a cross-fertilization between macroeconomists and historians of economics, providing, in conjunction with the papers themselves, a balanced outlook on the current relevance of Keynesian economics.

In mainstream economic theory money functions as an instrument for the circulation of commodities or for keeping a stock of liquid wealth. In neither case is it considered fundamental to the production of goods or the distribution of income. Augusto Graziani challenges traditional theories of monetary production, arguing that a modern economy based on credit cannot be understood without a focus on the administration of credit flows. He argues that market asset configuration depends not upon consumer preferences and available technologies but on how money and credit are managed. A strong exponent of the circulation theory of monetary production, Graziani presents an original and perhaps controversial argument that will stimulate debate on the topic.

INTEREST AND PRICES Geldzins und Guterpreise A STUDY OF THE CAUSES REGULATING THE VALUE OF MONEY By KNUT WiCKSELL Translated from the German by R. F. KAHN With an Introduction by PROFESSOR BERTIL OIIL1N Published on behalf of the Royal Economic Society by MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTINS STREET, LONDON 1936 COPYRIGHT PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY R. R. CLARK, LIMITED, EDINBURGH TRANSLATORS NOTE I IFAVE to express my sincere thanks to Miss Anna Schwarz schild, who read a portion of the manuscript with great care, and to Dr. Eduard Rosenbaum, who helped me out of many difficulties. The Appendix consists of Wicksells last published article, translated from the original Swedish by Mrs H. Norberg. Wicksells Geldzins und Giiterpreise was published at Jena by Gustav Fischer in 1898. Such footnotes as I have found it necessary to insert are enclosed in square brackets. R. F. K. CONTENTS PAGE INTRODUCTION BY PROFESSOR BERTH, OHLIN . . vii AUTHORS PREFACE ...... xxiii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTORY ....... 1 CHAPTER 2 PURCHASING POWER or MONEY AND AVERAGE PRICES . 7 CHAPTER 3 RELATIVE PRICES AND MONEY PRICES . . .18 CHAPTER 4 THE SO-CALLED COST OF PRODUCTION THEORY OF MONEY 29 CHAPTER 5 THE QUANTITY THEORY AND ITS OPPONENTS . .38 v vi INTEREST AND PRICES PAQM CHAPTER 6 THE VELOCITY OF CIRCULATION OF MONEY A. A Pure Cash Economy . . . . .51 B. Simple Credit ...... 59 C. An Organised Credit Economy . . . .62 CHAPTER 7 THE RATE OF INTEREST AS REGULATOR OF COMMODITY PRICES A. The Classical Theory and the School of TooJce . . 81 B. Simplest Hypothesis. Variations of the Rate of Interest when the Market Situation Remains otherwise Unaltered 87 CHAPTER 8 THE NATURAL RATE OF INTEREST ON CAPITAL AND THE RATEOF INTEREST ON LOANS . . . .102 CHAPTER 9 SYSTEMATIC EXPOSITION OF THE THEORY . A. The Causes which Determine the Natural Rate of Interest on Capital ....... 122 B. The Use of Money . . . . . .134 CHAPTER 10 INTERNATIONAL PRICE RELATIONSHIPS . . .157 CHAPTER 11 ACTUAL PRICE MOVEMENTS IN THE LIGHT OF THE PRECED ING THEORY . . . . . .165 CHAPTER 12 PRACTICAL PROPOSALS FOR THE STABILISATION OF THE VALUE OF MONEY . . . . . .178 APPENDIX THE MONETARY PROBLEM OF THE SCANDINAVIAN COUN TRIES ........ 197 INTRODUCTION To judge the character and importance of Knut Wicksells monetary doctrines, it is necessary to view them against the background of the monetary controversy of the late nineties. For some decades the organisation of an inter national gold standard had been the outstanding problem. Hardly had this organisation won its victory in the seventies, when its position was threatened by the con tinued fall in wholesale prices. A violent propaganda for bimetallism set in almost everywhere. The character, working, advantages, and disadvantages of this system naturally became the central topic of discussion in the monetary field. The old debate between the currency and the banking schools had died out and the latter un doubtedly held the field. The quantity theory of money was discredited, even in the Anglo-Saxon countries. Most writers agreed that if credits were granted on adequate security in accordance with sound banking principles, the supply of means of payment could not exceed the re quirements of the market. There was no discussion in that connection of the level of bank rate. Two things seem to have caused Wicksell to adopt an entirely different attitude to monetary problems. First ofall, he was a close student and admirer of the English classical school of economists, above all of Ricardo. To Wicksells mathematical mind the quantity theory of money, as presented by Ricardo, made a much stronger appeal than the vague generalisations of the current bank ing discussions, which side-stepped the question Why do prices rise or fall that Wicksell at an early stage came to regard as the main problem of monetary theory...

This book presents an alternative approach to monetary theory that differs from the General Theory of Keynes, the Monetarism of Friedman, and the New Classicism of Lucas. Particular attention is given to the work of Hawtrey and his analysis of financial crises and his explanation of the Great Depression. The unduly neglected monetary theory of Hawtrey is examined in the context of his contemporaries Keynes and Hayek and the subsequent contributions of Friedman and of the Monetary Approach to the Balance of Payments. Studies in the History of Monetary Theory aims to highlight the misunderstandings of the quantity theory and the price-specie-flow mechanism and to explain their unfortunate consequences for the subsequent development of monetary theory. The book is relevant to researchers, students, and policymakers interested in the history of economic thought, monetary theory, and monetary policy.

This book presents a survey of ideas about money which led up to those presented by the great classical economists. The scene is set with a description of the monetary system in France before the Revolution.