World Economies
Last updated: November 29, 2024
Driving around the outskirts of almost any city for the first time and spotting yet another IKEA, or walking down its main shopping street and spotting another H&M, you might wonder if every economy in the world is going to end up looking exactly the same. But these apparent similarities also mask big differences in the way economies in different countries are set up. This section of our site aims to look at some of the world’s different economies and some of the economic challenges individual countries are facing.
Larry Summers recommends his best books on globalisation and Jennifer M Harris her best books on geoeconomics. Kaushik Basu recommends his best books for understanding the Indian economy and Victor Shih does the same for the Chinese economy. The Ghanaian economist, Ayittey discusses the challenges of African development and Barry Eichengreen choses his best books on the Euro. Jonathan Portes looks at Brexit.
We still have some way to go, but if you’re an economist from a country whose economy hasn’t been covered yet, please write to us: [email protected]. And if you could make a reader list for us, explaining which books to read and why they’re important that would be even better!
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1
Kicking Away the Ladder: Development Strategy in Historical Perspective
by Ha-Joon Chang -
2
Creating the Cold War University: The Transformation of Stanford
by Rebecca Lowen -
3
Asia's Next Giant: South Korea and Late Industrialization
by Alice Amsden -
4
The Politics of Large Numbers: A History of Statistical Reasoning
by Alain Desrosières & Camille Naish (translator) -
5
The Collapse of Complex Societies
by Joseph Tainter
The best books on Industrial Policy, recommended by Danny Crichton
The best books on Industrial Policy, recommended by Danny Crichton
Government intervention in the economy played a key role in the East Asian economic miracle and, further back, the development of countries that have traditionally championed free markets around the world. As the merit of state leadership in key industries returns to mainstream debate, Danny Crichton of venture capital firm Lux Capital recommends five outstanding books for understanding industrial policy.
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1
The Great Divergence: China, Europe, and the Making of the Modern World Economy
by Kenneth Pomeranz -
2
Cotton: the Fabric that made the Modern World
by Giorgio Riello -
3
The City of Blue and White: Chinese Porcelain and the Early Modern World
by Anne Gerritsen -
4
Vermeer's Hat: The seventeenth century and the dawn of the global world
by Timothy Brook -
5
Horizons: The Global Origins of Modern Science
by James Poskett
The best books on Global History, recommended by Maxine Berg
The best books on Global History, recommended by Maxine Berg
From the Indian cottons that were traded around Asia and Africa in the Middle Ages, to the global dominance of the blue-and-white pottery of Jingdezhen, historian Maxine Berg introduces five books that transformed our understanding of the past millennium and are significant milestones in the development of the vibrant field of global history.
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1
Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists
by Luigi Zingales & Raghuram G Rajan -
2
Exit, Voice, and Loyalty
by Albert Hirschman -
3
Antitrust Paradox
by Robert H. Bork -
4
Lectures on Antitrust Economics
by Michael D. Whinston -
5
Radical Markets: Uprooting Capitalism and Democracy for a Just Society
by E. Glen Weyl & Eric A. Posner
The best books on Market Competition, recommended by Jason Furman
The best books on Market Competition, recommended by Jason Furman
Despite the large number of brands, most Americans buy their beer from just two companies. Consumer choice in the new digital economy is hardly better. Economist Jason Furman, chair of the Council of Economic Advisers under Barack Obama and now a professor at Harvard, recommends books to better understand market competition.
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1
What Next: How to get the best from Brexit
by Daniel Hannan -
2
Brexit Beckons: Thinking ahead by leading economists
by Richard Baldwin (ed) -
3
Branching histories of the 2016 referendum and ‘the frogs before the storm’
by Dominic Cummings -
4
Brexit: Why Britain Voted to Leave the European Union
by Harold Clarke, Matthew Goodwin & Paul Whiteley -
5
Autumn
by Ali Smith
The Best Things to Read on Brexit, recommended by Jonathan Portes
The Best Things to Read on Brexit, recommended by Jonathan Portes
Why did Brexit happen? What does the future hold for Britain outside the European Union? Can trade economists help? The economist and former head of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, a non-partisan think tank, recommends the best books (and one blogpost) on Brexit.
The best books on Globalization, recommended by Larry Summers
Globalization benefits mankind and we are learning how better to deal with the disruption it causes. But one thing is for sure, the laws of economics are no more escapable than the laws of physics. Harvard professor and former US Treasury secretary, Larry Summers, recommends the best books on globalization.
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1
Super Sad True Love Story
by Gary Shteyngart -
2
China's Superbank: Debt, Oil and Influence - How China Development Bank is Rewriting the Rules of Finance
by Henry Sanderson & Michael Forsythe -
3
Economic Statecraft
by David Allen Baldwin -
4
Network Power: The Social Dynamics of Globalization
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5
Spain in Our Hearts: Americans in the Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939
by Adam Hochschild
The best books on Geoeconomics, recommended by Jennifer M Harris
The best books on Geoeconomics, recommended by Jennifer M Harris
With its passion for neoliberal ideology, the US uses its economic weight clumsily in terms of foreign policy, says former state department official and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, Jennifer M. Harris. Here she picks the best books for understanding the vital area of geoeconomics.
The best books on The Indian Economy, recommended by Kaushik Basu
Kaushik Basu, Professor of Economics at Cornell and former Chief Economist of the World Bank (2012-2016), says there’s a Gandhian way of evaluating society that takes account of both growth and inequality, and tells us why his job is an anthropologist’s dream come true. He picks the best books to understand India’s economy.
The best books on The Euro, recommended by Barry Eichengreen
With hindsight, was the euro a good idea? Will it come through the present crisis intact or will any country decide to leave? And what happens if they do? Economist Barry Eichengreen recommends the best books on the euro.
The best books on Africa through African Eyes, recommended by George Ayittey
The Ghanaian economist George Ayittey denounces the failure of leadership and Western policy in Africa and explains what “African solutions to African problems” would mean in practice.
The best books on The Chinese Economy, recommended by Victor Shih
Victor Shih’s selection highlights rising inequality, economic irregularity and political heavy-handedness at the heart of modern China. As its economy blazes on, uncertain times may be looming