Showing papers in "PSL Quarterly Review in 1982"

Debt deflation processes in today’s institutional environment

Abstract: In the observations of the economy as it moved towards the great collapse of the winter of 1932-33, the elements of what happens when the market system breaks down are revealed. The work looks at the successful interventions of the 1960s and 70s, detailing how incoherence can be constrained and a semblance of coherence imposed. The author argues that although the processes that make for debt deflations and over-indebtedness are persistent characteristics of capitalist economies, the actual result of these processes in observable behaviour depends upon the institutional context and the force of policy interventions. Moreover, economic administration cannot be reduced to a simple routine.

Current account deficit, foreign borrowing, and monetary policy: the Italian experience

Abstract: The work reviews the stormy evolution of current accounts in the Italian balance of payments and the ways and timing by which equilibrium has been, or is in the course of being, restored. An international comparison finds that Italy is not alone in its effort to finance a process of readjustment, however, it is more seriously exposed because of the relative size of the debt and concentration of the foreign exchange risk. Thus far, adjustment has been pursued thanks to the combined operation of the depreciation of the currency on the exchange market and the restriction of demand. JEL: F32, E52