The European Economy in an American Mirror

by Barry Eichengreen (Editor)

Europe’s economy is under strain due to lagging productivity growth, population ageing, the difficulties of adjustment in an enlarged European Union, and the challenges of globalization. In comparison with America, rates of growth of GDP per capita and labour productivity growth are anaemic, raising questions about the viability of a distinct European model. From observations like these, conclusions can be drawn that Europe will feel irresistible pressure to allow its policies and institutions to converge toward those of the United States. But how far and how fast are uncertain. Edited by internationally renowned authors in the field and packed with articles by an impressive array of international contributors, this book examines the American and European economies; drawing comparisons between them. Bringing together specialists from both sides of the Atlantic, including Lindert, DeLong and Buti to analyze the current state of both economies and their responses to the changing global environment, the book deals with competitiveness on the one hand and the relationship between institutions and markets on the other. This volume is particularly relevant to postgraduate and postdoctoral students undertaking research in all areas of European integration and international political economy, while also being appropriate for a professional audience.

528 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Barry Eichengreen* is the George C. Pardee and Helen N. Pardee Professor of Economics and Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has taught since 1987. He is a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research (Cambridge, Massachusetts) and Research Fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research (London, England). In 1997-98 he was Senior Policy Advisor at the International Monetary Fund. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (class of 1997).

Professor Eichengreen is the convener of the Bellagio Group of academics and economic officials and chair of the Academic Advisory Committee of the Peterson Institute of International Economics. He has held Guggenheim and Fulbright Fellowships and has been a fellow of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (Palo Alto) and the Institute for Advanced Study (Berlin). He is a regular monthly columnist for Project Syndicate.

His most recent books are Exorbitant Privilege: The Rise and Fall of the Dollar and the Future of the International Monetary System (January 2011)(shortlisted for the Financial Times and Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year Award in 2011), Emerging Giants: China and India in the World Economy, co-edited with Poonam Gupta and Ranjiv Kumar (2010), Labor in the Era of Globalization, co-edited with Clair Brown and Michael Reich (2009), Institutions for Regionalism: Enhancing Asia's Economic Cooperation and Integration, coedited with Jong-Wha Lee (2009), and Fostering Monetary & Financial Cooperation in East Asia, co-edited with Duck-Koo Chung (2009). Other books include Globalizing Capital: A History of the International Monetary System, Second Edition (2008), The European Economy since 1945: Coordinated Capitalism and Beyond (updated paperback edition, 2008), Bond Markets in Latin America: On the Verge of a Big Bang?, co-edited with Eduardo Borensztein, Kevin Cowan, and Ugo Panizza (2008), and China, Asia, and the New World Economy, co-edited with Charles Wyplosz and Yung Chul Park (2008).

Professor Eichengreen was awarded the Economic History Association's Jonathan R.T. Hughes Prize for Excellence in Teaching in 2002 and the University of California at Berkeley Social Science Division's Distinguished Teaching Award in 2004. He is the recipient of a doctor honoris causa from the American University in Paris, and the 2010 recipient of the Schumpeter Prize from the International Schumpeter Society. He was named one of Foreign Policy Magazine 's 100 Leading Global Thinkers in 2011. He is Immediate Past President of the Economic History Association (2010-11 academic year).

* This is the biosketch available at his faculty page.