Episode 60 - 7. The New Deal and the Post War International Monetary System - Murray N Rothbard
Summary
Murray Rothbard analyzes the 1933 London World Economic Conference, arguing that President Roosevelt’s rejection of currency stabilization in favor of domestic inflation destroyed the international monetary order. This shift toward monetary nationalism led to competitive devaluations and trade wars, which Rothbard links to the rise of German economic nationalism and bilateral barter deals. He contends that American hostility toward these German trade practices, rather than ideological factors, was a primary driver behind the Western push for World War II.
Topics discussed
Collapse of the 1920s gold standard and US devaluation
1933 World Economic Conference and conflicting monetary views
The American dream of coordinated worldwide inflation
Failed temporary stabilization agreement with Britain and France
US rejection of stabilization and push for credit expansion
Gold outflows and the final compromise resolution attempt
Roosevelt's rejection of stabilization and 'specious fallacy'
Resignations of Warburg and Sprague; Baruch's loyalty
US pressure on Britain to maintain pound value above $4.80
German exchange controls and bilateral trade agreements
US economic warfare against German trade in Latin America
Trade agreements as a precursor to war and economic alignment
Economic causes of WWII and the Bretton Woods interpretation
German capitulation to US demands and non-negotiable conditions
Bretton Woods: Dollar as sole key currency and US war aims
US strategy to break down the British Sterling Bloc
Harry Dexter White's plan vs. Keynes' clearing union proposal
IMF establishment and overvalued European currencies
Domestic opposition to IMF and US export expansion goals
Post-war dollar shortage and the rise of Austrian economics
Nixon Shock, gold price predictions, and return to currency blocks
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