Anup Shah: Global Financial Crisis

Global Financial Crisis
by Anup Shah
Global Issues

The global financial crisis, brewing for a while, really started to show its effects in the middle of 2007 and into 2008. Around the world stock markets have fallen, large financial institutions have collapsed or been bought out, and governments in even the wealthiest nations have had to come up with rescue packages to bail out their financial systems.

On the one hand many people are concerned that those responsible for the financial problems are the ones being bailed out, while on the other hand, a global financial meltdown will affect the livelihoods of almost everyone in an increasingly inter-connected world. The problem could have been avoided, if ideologues supporting the current economics models weren’t so vocal, influential and inconsiderate of others’ viewpoints and concerns.

This article provides an overview of the crisis with links for further, more detailed, coverage at the end.

This web page has the following sub-sections:

A crisis so severe, the world financial system is affected
Securitization and the subprime crisis
Creating more risk by trying to manage risk
The scale of the crisis: trillions in taxpayer bailouts
A crisis so severe, those responsible are bailed out
A crisis so severe, the rest suffer too
The financial crisis and wealthy countries
A crisis signaling the decline of US’s superpower status?
Europe and the financial crisis
Structural Adjustment for Industrialized Nations
Focusing on debt instead of the economy
Austerity as ideological opportunity
Austerity without economic growth = backwards development
Lost decade?
The financial crisis and the developing world
Asia and the financial crisis
Africa and the financial crisis
Latin America and the financial crisis
A crisis in context
A crisis of poverty for much of humanity
A global food crisis affecting the poorest the most
Human rights conditions made worse by the crisis
Poor nations will get less financing for development
Odious third world debt has remained for decades; Banks and military get money easily
A crisis that need not have happened
Dealing with recession
Developing world saving the West?
Rethinking the international financial system?
Reforming international banking and finance?
Reforming International Trade and the WTO
Reforming the Bretton Woods Institutions (IMF and World Bank)?
Reform and Resistance
Rich countries resist meaningful reform
Rethinking economics?
More information

To Read the Resources Included In This Mapping of the Issue