The Economic History of Latin America Since Independence

This study, now in a revised and updated third edition, covers the economic history of Latin America from independence in the 1820s to the present. It stresses the differences between Latin American countries while recognizing the external influences to which the whole region has been subject. Victor Bulmer-Thomas notes the failure of the region to close the gap in living standards between it and the United States and explores the reasons. He also examines the new paradigm taking shape in Latin America since the debt crisis of the 1980s and asks whether this new economic model will be able to bring the growth and improvement in equity that the region desperately needs. This third edition contains a wealth of new material that draws on the new research in the area in the past ten years. Advance praise: 'Bulmer-Thomas's third update of The Economic History of Latin America since Independence is the essential, even canonical, guide for a region of the world long dominated by commodities and their export. Scrupulously detailed and balanced, the book outlines Latin America's largely disappointing growth record without discounting the region's economic variety, historical achievements, and social possibilities. Those hoping to re-energize the study of Latin American economic history can start reading here.' Paul Gootenberg, SUNY Distinguished Professor of History and Sociology, Stony Brook University, and author of Andean Cocaine: The Making of a Global Drug (2009) Advance praise: 'This is a first-class economic history written by a professional economist who masterfully analyzes the complex interactions of the most relevant economic variables and key social indicators in order to show how the Latin American nations eventually became integrated into the modern world economic system. Dr Victor Bulmer-Thomas has superbly updated a well-known classic that will remain the best economic history of Latin America for many, many years. Congratulations!' Frank Moya Pons, Academia Dominicana de la Historia, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Advance praise: 'Authoritative, comprehensive, synthetic, and well written - Bulmer-Thomas has distilled, interpreted, and displayed Latin America's economic history over the past two centuries deftly and expertly.' Jorge I. Dominguez, Antonio Madero Professor for the Study of Mexico, Harvard University1. Latin American economic development: an overview; 2. The struggle for national identity: from independence to mid-century; 3. The export sector and the world economy, circa 1850-1914; 4. Export-led growth: the supply side; 5. Export-led growth and the non-export economy; 6. The First World War and its aftermath; 7. Policy, performance, and structural change in the 1930s; 8. War and the new international economic order; 9. Inward-looking development in the postwar period; 10. New trade strategies and debt-led growth; 11. Debt, adjustment, and the shift to a new paradigm; 12. Conclusions; Appendix 1. Data sources for population and exports before 1914; Appendix 2. The ratio of exports to Gross Domestic Product, the purchasing power of exports, the net barter terms of trade and the volume of exports, circa 1850 to circa 1912; Appendix 3. Population, exports, public revenue and GDP for the main Latin American countries before 1914; Appendix 4. GDP per head in Latin America since 1900.