Money matters... but so does finance Starting with the link between money and economic activity, this study shows how today's financial systems have shaped the way that monetary policy is transmitted to the real economy. The information gathering and decisionmaking processes within the financial system play a key role in determining both how credit is allocated and how the risks implied by credit are borne. The study points to what went wrong during the credit boom of the 2000s, which was the counterpart to a huge accumulation of savings, concentrated mainly in emerging economies. This accumulation could well continue. Making better use of the coming savings is a challenge that authorities will have to meet if they want finance to better serve the real economy.

Financial Markets and the Real Economy reviews the current academic literature on the macroeconomics of finance.

In 2013 economic crisis is marked by systemic and structural contradictions, exploding inequality, ecological overshoot and the erosion of trust, democracy and community. Trillions were given to Wall Street banks to avert financial collapse on the ground of "too big to fail." Private losses morphed into public losses. Taxpayers shouldered the losses from financial speculation and unbounded deregulation. Government acted as the "errand boy for the banks" (Bill Moyers). Economic problems are systemic and structural, not psychological and motivational. Risk-takers and job-creators have been unmasked. Risk-managers turned out to be risk-producers. The system must be changed because the systrem leads to stagnant wages over 30 years, totally inadequate creation of family-wage jobs paying into social security. Our clientele system confuses public and private, ignores long-term necessities (e.g. universal health care, free or affordable education and rights of nature) in favor of profit maximization and shareholder interests. We face system (collective and political) problems since lobbyists write legislation, corporations are treated as persons, money is regarded as speech (the disastrous 2010 Supreme Court decision in Citizens United) and investment is confused with speculation. Financial investment eclipses real economy investment. Wall Street banks spend over $4 billion over 10 years for lobbying and campaign contributions. The myths of neoliberalism and shareholder value were and are the basis for the 2007-2008 financial crisis. The myths of the invisible hand (that self-interest leads to the public interest), corporate beneficence, money created out of thin air, the Enron-model, the Apple-Google model of billions in dummy corporations or tax havens, the investors-suing-states model and the myth of nature as a free good, external or sink must be deconstructed and abandoned. Cooperation and competition are not opposites but depend on one another. Education, health care, air waves, food, housing and information are public and must remain public. Otherwise they become privileges and we live in a plutocracy or 21st century feudalism. The time is right for alternative economics, reducing working hours, labor-intensive investment, person-related work, access not excess and enough not more. Unlike a chair, an idea can be shared by a whole people! The following articles by Swiss, Austrian and German critical economists could revitalize public debate and understanding. The present system is unsustainable and the future system is still being designed. Radical change is a necessity given the end of cheap oil, climate change and the need to redefine work, security, happiness and health. Only dead fish swim with the stream. You can make fish soup out of an aquarium but you can't make an aquarium out of fish soup. A public debate on job creation, shrinking the financial sector, market failure, motors, models and myths is imperative.

Date of publication obtained from publisher website.

Debunking the myths around the current economic belief systems, this book reveals how mainstream perspectives work for the benefit of the organised money establishment, while causing all manner of destructions, inequalities and frauds, all conspiring against the common good. Focused on the realities of organisational systems, Pearson offers a practical alternative to economic dogma. Written from a distinctive perspective that combines practitioner and academic expertise, this book is structured as a simple model of business strategy and identifies necessary systems change in order to achieve a truly sustainable future.

The European Union's weakest economy is in crisis. This makes Greece's participation in European Monetary Union doubtful and weakens her security against mounting foreign pressures. She must improve her economic performance dramatically. The book explains why Greece has lost ground and covers growth, inflation, public debt, banking, social security, industry, housing and tourism. The social and political roots of the crisis are identified. The road for recovery is outlined. Passionately written, it is also a rich source of data on Greece not readily found elsewhere.

An accessible, thoroughly engaging look at how the economy really works and its role in your everyday life Not surprisingly, regular people suddenly are paying a lot closer attention to the economy than ever before. But economics, with its weird technical jargon and knotty concepts and formulas can be a very difficult subject to get to grips with on your own. Enter Greg Ip and his Little Book of Economics. Like a patient, good-natured tutor, Greg, one of today's most respected economics journalists, walks you through everything you need to know about how the economy works. Short on technical jargon and long on clear, concise, plain-English explanations of important terms, concepts, events, historical figures and major players, this revised and updated edition of Greg's bestselling guide clues you in on what's really going on, what it means to you and what we should be demanding our policymakers do about the economy going forward. From inflation to the Federal Reserve, taxes to the budget deficit, you get indispensible insights into everything that really matters about economics and its impact on everyday life Special sections featuring additional resources of every subject discussed and where to find additional information to help you learn more about an issue and keep track of ongoing developments Offers priceless insights into the roots of America's economic crisis and its aftermath, especially the role played by excessive greed and risk-taking, and what can be done to avoid another economic cataclysm Digs into globalization, the roots of the Euro crisis, the sources of China's spectacular growth, and why the gap between the economy's winners and losers keeps widening