| Synopsis: |
In the days following the fall of Lehman Brothers in autumn 2008, confidence in the global economy was in freefall. This book, first published as an eBook only a few weeks after the event, outlines the fears of some of the world's leading economists that the unfolding financial market meltdown had the potential to trigger a massive and prolonged recession that would destroy hundreds of millions of jobs worldwide and wipe out the savings of countless households - with the most vulnerable being hit hardest. They were not wrong. The authors call for policymakers to embark on forceful and coordinated action to avoid the next Great Depression. While their essays differ on many points, a clear consensus emerges on the need to act swiftly and together. The authors are: Alberto Alesina, Michael Burda, Charles Calomiris, Roger Craine, Stijn Claessens, J Bradford DeLong, Douglas Diamond, Barry Eichengreen, Daniel Gros, Luigi Guiso, Anil K Kashyap, Marco Pagano, Avinash Persaud, Richard Portes, Raghuram G Rajan, Guido Tabellini, Angel Ubide, Charles Wyplosz and Klaus Zimmermann. |