A Modern Economic History of Emerging Markets (1950 - 2020): Dirigisme, Globalization and Disruption

This book offers a comprehensive economic history of emerging market economies post-WWII and identifies a complex web of sustainability problems that face the EMEs going forward. It seeks to present a truly global perspective on the development of EMEs and the long-term trends that have brought EMEs to a critical economic juncture.

The first section of the book charts how EMEs became tightly integrated into the global economy at rapid pace, analysing economic achievements as well as imbalances and sustainability issues that have been generated over time. It considers how EMEs have withstood episodes of complex structural transitions and financial shocks, and offers comparative perspectives on patterns of dispersion within the EME landscape from the end of WWII to the present. The second part of the book seeks to understand how EMEs might cope with the volatility brought about by a new ’age of disruption’ defined by major structural challenges to the neo-liberal economic order. It considers which EMEs are best positioned to respond to issues of economic inequality, financial excess, technological disruption and climate change, what a global historical understanding of the EMEs can offer to policymakers, and the impact on the EME investment landscape. This book will be of interest to a broad audience including researchers of economic history and political economy, as well as policymakers, investment professionals, and the general reader interested in global economic development.

Ahmet Akarli is a Senior Research Fellow at the London School of Economics. He holds MSc and PhD degrees in Economic History from the LSE and worked as a macroeconomist and investment strategist at various global investment banks and macro hedge funds for 25 years.