A New Economic History of Argentina
The long-run data behind the country's century of relative decline.
Summary
The reference has not verified this book in detail; the summary states only what the title, author and subject establish.
Della Paolera and Taylor edited a collection of quantitative economic history chapters on Argentina, covering roughly 1810 to 2000, with contributions from economic historians working with reconstructed data series.
The reference has not verified the individual chapters. The organising question of the field, which the volume addresses, is why Argentina diverged. Around 1900 Argentina was among the richest countries in the world by income per head, comparable to Canada, Australia and much of Western Europe, and it grew rapidly on agricultural exports, foreign investment and mass immigration. Over the following century it fell steadily behind, and by 2000 its income per head was a fraction of the countries it once matched.
The explanations examined in the literature include the collapse of the open trading system after 1929 and Argentina's particular exposure to it; the shift to import substituting industrialisation and its consequences; the instability of monetary and fiscal institutions, with repeated currency collapses, defaults and inflations; the political conflict between agricultural export interests and urban industrial and labour interests; property rights and the absence of institutional durability across regime changes; and the recurring pattern of stabilisation programmes that succeeded briefly and then failed.
The volume covers monetary and banking history, trade and factor flows, public finance and the specific crisis episodes.
This is quantitative economic history written for specialists, and it assumes familiarity with the methods. Readers should consult the table of contents for the periods and questions relevant to them.
Key takeaways 6
- Argentina was among the world's richest countries by income per head around 1900 and fell behind steadily thereafter.
- Growth before 1914 rested on agricultural exports, foreign capital inflow and mass immigration under an open trading system.
- The collapse of open trade after 1929 hit Argentina harder than comparable countries because of its export concentration.
- Repeated currency collapses, defaults and inflations reflect the absence of durable monetary institutions rather than a series of accidents.
- Political conflict between agricultural export interests and urban industrial and labour interests shaped policy across regimes.
- Stabilisation programmes succeeded briefly and failed repeatedly, which indicates a problem with institutional commitment rather than with programme design.
Who should read it
Economic historians and analysts working on Argentina or on long-run divergence who need quantitative treatment by specialists.
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Where it sits in the reference 2
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