Abstract
In this seminar, Professor David Vines will discuss the evolution in global economic governance over the past 80 years. He will begin by outlining the post-WWII origins of economic collaboration, including the establishment of the Bretton Woods system and GATT. He will then track the subsequent evolution of global economic governance, including the successful phase of the early 2000s known as the Great Moderation, and consider the missed opportunity for a similar resurgence post the Global Financial Crisis with the G20 at the helm. Professor Vines will analyse contemporary challenges including economic nationalism, expanded policy demands, and China's ascent as a leading power that have impeded progress.
An overarching concern of the lecture will be to examine whether, going forward, the system of global economic governance which emerges will continue to respect the values of liberal internationalism. These are values which have been of fundamental importance for the world economic order, ever since the Second World War. They are now under very great threat.
This will be a hybrid event, and we encourage you to attend it in person for an opportunity to engage in a discussion with our guest speaker.
About the presenter
David Vines is Emeritus Professor of Economics, and Emeritus Fellow of Balliol College, at Oxford University. He is also the Director of the Ethics and Economics Programme at the Institute for New Economic Thinking in the Oxford Martin School and a Research Fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research in London.
David's research is on macroeconomics, finance, and global economic governance. His initial work was with the Nobel-Prize winner James Meade in Cambridge; together they published some of the earliest research on inflation-targeting regimes.
He is currently writing about international economic cooperation, the reconstruction of macroeconomic theory in the wake of the covid pandemic, and macroeconomic policymaking in Australia.
David's publications include The Leaderless Economy and Keynes: Useful Economics for the World Economy, both written jointly with Peter Temin of MIT, and Capital Failure: Restoring Trust in Financial Services, which he edited with Nicholas Morris. He will be the joint editor of another issue of OxREP, to be published in June 2024, that will examine the changing world order and global economic governance.
Material and video recording
A transcript and captions for this video will be available in due course.
Fiscal Policy for the Future seminar series
New ideas, innovative concepts, research evidence and expert advice are all crucial to stimulate and inform the Treasury's economic analysis and advice. Our current theme for guest lectures - Fiscal Policy for the Future - explores the role of stabilising, sustainable and effective fiscal policy. Speakers will provide insights into how fiscal policy can be designed to support government to meet its current and future objectives and obligations while adapting to changing circumstances and delivering value to the New Zealand public.
Fiscal policy has a stabilising role in helping to smooth the business cycle, while sustainability in fiscal policy is foundational for resilience to both shocks and longstanding challenges, such as climate change, technological advancements and demographic trends. Ensuring effective and value for money expenditure is important so that fiscal policy contributes to the living standards of New Zealanders, both now and in the future.