Showing papers by "John H. Coatsworth published in 2002"
TL;DR: The authors showed that tariffs in Latin America were far higher than anywhere else in the century before the Great Depression, which is a surprising fact given that this region has been said to have exploited globalization forces better than most during the pre-1914 belle epoque and for which the Great depression has always been viewed as a critical policy turning point towards protection and de-linking from the world economy.
Abstract: This paper uncovers a fact that has not been well appreciated: tariffs in Latin America were far higher than anywhere else in the century before the Great Depression. This is a surprising fact given that this region has been said to have exploited globalization forces better than most during the pre-1914 belle epoque and for which the Great Depression has always been viewed as a critical policy turning point towards protection and de-linking from the world economy. This paper shows that the explanation cannot lie with output gains from protection, since, while such gains were present in Europe and its non-Latin offshoots, they were not present in Latin America. The paper then explores Latin American tariffs as a revenue source, as a protective device for special interests, and as the result of other political economy struggles. We conclude by asking whether the same pro-protection conditions exist today as those which existed more than a century ago.
84 citations
Posted Content•
TL;DR: This article showed that tariffs in Latin America were far higher than anywhere else in the century before the Great Depression, which is a surprising fact given that this region has been said to have exploited globalization forces better than most during the pre-1914 belle epoque and for which the Great depression has always been viewed as a critical policy turning point towards protection and de-linking from the world economy.
Abstract: This paper uncovers a fact that has not been well appreciated: tariffs in Latin America were far higher than anywhere else in the century before the Great Depression. This is a surprising fact given that this region has been said to have exploited globalization forces better than most during the pre-1914 belle epoque and for which the Great Depression has always been viewed as a critical policy turning point towards protection and de-linking from the world economy. This paper shows that the explanation cannot lie with output gains from protection, since, while such gains were present in Europe and its non-Latin offshoots, they were not present in Latin America. The paper then explores Latin American tariffs as a revenue source, as a protective device for special interests, and as the result of other political economy struggles. We conclude by asking whether the same pro-protection conditions exist today as those which existed more than a century ago.
56 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the precocious development of deliberate policies to foster import-substituting industrialization (ISI) in Mexico has been analyzed, not as a mere side effect of successful export-led growth but as a consequence of active government intervention.
Abstract: This important new monograph in Stanford's outstanding Social Science History series analyzes the precocious development of deliberate policies to foster importsubstituting industrialization (ISI) in Mexico. Beatty shows that in the 1890s the government of Porfirio Diaz consciously manipulated tariff policies to protect and foster Mexican industry, reformed patent laws in an effort to promote the transfer of useful technologies to Mexico, and adopted a menu of tax exemptions and other aid to help new industries. Porfirian industrialization accelerated, Beatty argues, not as a mere side effect of successful export-led growth but as a consequence of active government intervention.
10 citations
Posted Content•
TL;DR: This article showed that tariffs in Latin America were far higher than anywhere else in the century before the Great Depression, which is a surprising fact given that this region has been said to have exploited globalization forces better than most during the pre-1914 belle epoque and for which the Great depression has always been viewed as a critical policy turning point towards protection and de-linking from the world economy.
Abstract: This paper uncovers a fact that has not been well appreciated: tariffs in Latin America were far higher than anywhere else in the century before the Great Depression. This is a surprising fact given that this region has been said to have exploited globalization forces better than most during the pre-1914 belle epoque and for which the Great Depression has always been viewed as a critical policy turning point towards protection and de-linking from the world economy. This paper shows that the explanation cannot lie with output gains from protection, since, while such gains were present in Europe and its non-Latin offshoots, they were not present in Latin America. The paper then explores Latin American tariffs as a revenue source, as a protective device for special interests, and as the result of other political economy struggles. We conclude by asking whether the same pro-protection conditions exist today as those which existed more than a century ago.
3 citations