 Caliban: The Devaluation of Sterling in 1949A. Cairncross Chapter 6 in Economics in the Long View, 1982, pp 121-154 from Palgrave Macmillan Abstract: Abstract To those who took part in it, the devaluation of sterling in September 1949 was one of the most dramatic episodes in the postwar history of the United Kingdom. It seemed likely at the time that it would also prove one of the most important in terms of its effects. There might be room for disagreement as to the need or the purpose or the wisdom or even the significance of the devaluation. But it was unmistakably a turning-point. So rare and startling an event as a fall of 30 per cent in the parity of sterling, the currency in which one- third of the world’s commerce was conducted, could not fail to exercise a powerful influence on international transactions of all kinds. Yet many of those who have looked back on the devaluation have doubted whether it accomplished any lasting changes and have concluded that it was of quite minor importance in post-war economic development. How does it look now in retrospect after thirty years that have seen one more major devaluation of sterling as well as day-to-day fluctuations that rob devaluation of its drama? Keywords: Current Account; Government Expenditure; British Trade; Dollar Market; Dollar Reserve (search for similar items in EconPapers) There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it. Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pal:palchp:978-1-349-06293-5_6 Ordering information: This item can be ordered from DOI: 10.1007/978-1-349-06293-5_6 Access Statistics for this chapter More chapters in Palgrave Macmillan Books from Palgrave Macmillan |
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