Against the mainstream, nazi privatization in 1930s Germany

Germà Bel

No 200607, IREA Working Papers from University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics

Abstract: The Great Depression spurred State ownership in Western capitalist countries. Germany was no exception, the last governments of the Weimar Republic took over firms in diverse sectors. Later, the Nazi regime transferred public ownership and public services to the private sector. In doing so, they went against the mainstream trends in the Western capitalist countries, none of which systematically reprivatized firms during the 1930s. Privatization in Nazi Germany was also unique in transferring to private hands the delivery of public services previously provided by government. The firms and the services transferred to private ownership belonged to diverse sectors. Privatization was part of an intentional policy with multiple objectives and was not ideologically driven. As in many recent privatizations, particularly within the European Union, strong financial restrictions were a central motivation. In addition, privatization was used as a political tool to enhance support for the government and for the Nazi Party.

Keywords: Privatization; Public Enterprise; Nazi Economy; Germany. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G38 L32 L33 N44 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 26 pages
Date: 2006-12, Revised 2006-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-his and nep-pbe
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Against the mainstream: Nazi privatization in 1930s Germany (2007)
Working Paper: Against the mainstream: Nazi privatization in 1930s Germany (2006)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ira:wpaper:200607

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