Fixing Global Finance

In his latest, author and economics journalist Wolf (Why Globalization Works) pronounces the current, ""nearly inevitable"" global economic crisis the product of a ""perfect storm"" of global macroeconomic imbalances: the scale of net borrowing by the U.S. and the lack of corporate demand for outside funding, exacerbated by aggressive monetary easing, consequent financial excess, and the housing bubble. Wolf's writing is hardly popular economics, requiring some work to understand and absorb, but it bridges a gap in economic understanding not yet addressed by Congressional subcommittees or the media, whose only suspects thus far have been Republican free market policy and Wall Street greed. The primary problem, argues Wolf, is global reliance on the United States as the borrower of last resort. Whether Wolf is correct is another question-determining that would require putting his suggested policies into action. Domestic financial housecleaning aside, Wolf's plan includes countries like China finding domestic uses for their enormous account surpluses and emerging countries creating first-world financial systems that complement but don't depend upon global financial markets, goals requiring significant international cooperation. Heavy but rewarding, Wolf's analysis fills in a lot of blanks for those seeking to understand the new U.S. recession in a global context.