Business & Economics

Our lives are imbued with rules and regulations, some of which are vital and sensible, but others are simply stupid. Time-wasting processes of compliance don’t improve anyone’s lives or wellbeing and burden companies and organizations with productivity-sapping paperwork. In these instances, we would be better off resorting to the exercise of authority. It is a concept that we are now afraid of, but authority in the right place is a more efficient and transparent option for getting things done.


Natasha Hamilton-Hart navigates the rules-maze that has proliferated in response to crisis and failure in recent decades, challenging us to consider just how ineffective stupid rules are in holding power to account, to improving service delivery, and even in managing the office dress code. A must-read for anyone frustrated by the bureaucratic overload regulations create and for those needing to rethink their approach to management.

Despite automatic enrolment in work-pension schemes, private saving for pensions in the UK is low with most people being relatively under-pensioned in later life and reliant on the state pension. There is also a clear gender gap in the way that pension saving happens, with women living longer and saving much less for old age than men.


In this incisive book, Hayley James seeks to challenge the hetero-patriarchal assumptions in pension systems. She demonstrates the ways in which pension saving, as an everyday practice of finance, is shaped by gender and how this evolves over the lifecourse. She examines the ways in which pension systems are not gender-neutral, since they assume behaviours which marginalize the lived experiences of gender, and argues that, to resolve gendered inequalities in pensions, we need to change systems to suit the realities of lived experience.

Our lives are imbued with rules and regulations, some of which are vital and sensible, but others are simply stupid. Time-wasting processes of compliance don’t improve anyone’s lives or wellbeing and burden companies and organizations with productivity-sapping paperwork. In these instances, we would be better off resorting to the exercise of authority. It is a concept that we are now afraid of, but authority in the right place is a more efficient and transparent option for getting things done.


Natasha Hamilton-Hart navigates the rules-maze that has proliferated in response to crisis and failure in recent decades, challenging us to consider just how ineffective stupid rules are in holding power to account, to improving service delivery, and even in managing the office dress code. A must-read for anyone frustrated by the bureaucratic overload regulations create and for those needing to rethink their approach to management.

The promotion of women’s entrepreneurship has travelled globally in recent years and has been regarded as a relatively unquestioned good. It has been adopted as a tool for governments, policy-makers, and development professionals and applied to women in various political, economic and social contexts. Specifically, the focus on women’s enterprises by international organizations, such as the World Bank, has established women’s enterprise promotion as a signifier of modern and cosmopolitan economies. As such, there is an important need to discuss the outcomes of the various applications of women’s enterprise promotion and to offer a political economy of women’s entrepreneurship.

Moving beyond the input-output perspectives that have consistently positioned female entrepreneurs as underperforming relative to their male counterparts, this book argues that the universally distinctive experiences of women entrepreneurs are indicative of the need for a political economy of entrepreneurship, especially at the level of the household. Drawing from country-specific research, the book highlights the gaps between rhetoric and practice by policy-makers and programme designers promoting women’s entrepreneurship. Furthermore, the analysis begins to close the conceptual gaps around the economic and social outcomes of entrepreneurship for women and establishes a foundation from which to build entrepreneurship theory and to strengthen enterprise programmes and policies.

Heterodox economics differs from orthodox or mainstream economics. It draws on a multiplicity of ideas, disciplines, methods and voices to present a more radical alternative to the dominant paradigm of neoclassical economics, which is viewed as overly narrow and blind-sided to how economies actually work.


Andrew Trigg traces the heterodox tradition from its origins in the anti-capitalism ideas of the first half of the nineteeth century, through to Keynes and the present day. He shows the plurality of ideas which inform its history – including social theory, feminism and environmental thought – and the methodological challenge they present to mainstream economics. The book also considers the prospects for heterodox economics and whether it will continue to remain outside the citadel.

Heterodox economics differs from orthodox or mainstream economics. It draws on a multiplicity of ideas, disciplines, methods and voices to present a more radical alternative to the dominant paradigm of neoclassical economics, which is viewed as overly narrow and blind-sided to how economies actually work.


Andrew Trigg traces the heterodox tradition from its origins in the anti-capitalism ideas of the first half of the nineteeth century, through to Keynes and the present day. He shows the plurality of ideas which inform its history – including social theory, feminism and environmental thought – and the methodological challenge they present to mainstream economics. The book also considers the prospects for heterodox economics and whether it will continue to remain outside the citadel.

Growing levels of income and wage inequality and the precaritization of many sections of the labour force have made labour unions as salient as ever. Although membership levels have decreased, they remain among the world’s largest representative organizations and continue to play a significant role as vehicles for democracy, sustainable development and social justice.


This handbook assembles an array of experts to critically engage with the debates and discussions about the role and purpose of unions and the many means by which they seek to attain them. The book provides insights into how unions can meet the challenges of structural changes in the labour market, including technological progress, the green agenda and the digital platform economy, and how they can better represent the needs of their members, in particular migrant, domestic and informal workers.


The book is a valuable resource for industrial relations, labour economics, sociology of work, employment and labour law, history of trade unionism, working patterns and practices, workplace culture and workers’ rights.

Antitrust or competition law is widely considered an essential part of the legal and political structures of most liberal democracies and an integral foundation of a market economy. In this book, Mark D. White disputes this understanding, drawing on concepts from economics, philosophy, and law to argue that the pre-eminent status accorded to the regulation of competition should be reconsidered by any government that claims to support basic property rights.


Despite its populist origins, antitrust is usually understood today in terms of economic theory, which provides a solid foundation for the analysis of market competition. As this logic goes, governments restrict firms from engaging in behaviour regarded as uncompetitive, with the purpose of protecting consumers, other firms, or the very process of competition itself. However, this neglects the fundamental property rights on which the market economy is based, an unfortunate implication of the utilitarian ethics at the heart of economics. Firms are held responsible for promoting societal welfare and penalized for failing to do so, even when their actions violate no recognized rights of consumers or competitors. This view of commerce sees firms as agents of the state rather than opportunities for individuals to pursue their interests in exchange with others. As White explains, competition or antitrust law serves as an example of how economics privileges welfare and efficiency over rights and justice, promoting the maximization of outcomes while ignoring the rights of those who generate them.


Accessible and non-technical, this book assumes no previous knowledge of economics, philosophy, or law, and provides a fresh and thought-provoking perspective on antitrust and competition law that will challenge readers from all backgrounds and political stances to question the degree to which its wisdom is taken for granted.

We are the only species that uses fire. It has determined how we have made our home on this planet and it has propelled us to the role of the dominant species in the biosphere. But at the heart of contemporary climate change is the process of combustion. Simon Dalby explores what a life without burning things might look like, and how we might get there.


Fires make the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that is heating the planet, melting the ice sheets, changing weather patterns and making wildfires worse. Our civilization is burning things, especially fossil fuels, at prodigious rates. So much so that we are now heading towards a future “Hothouse Earth” with a climate that is very different from what humans have known so far.


By focusing on fire and our partial control over one key physical force in the earth system, that of combustion, Simon Dalby is able to ask important and interesting questions about us as humans, including different ways of thinking about how we live, and how we might do so differently in the future. Simply put, there is now far too much “firepower” loose in the world and we need to think much harder about how to live together in ways that don’t require burning stuff to do so.

Economic policymakers use various macroeconomic models, but how reliable are they in real-world conditions? Starting from the premise that all models are wrong, but some are useful, Matteo Iannizzotto introduces and explains the workings of the key economic models available for policymaking. He shows that the inconsistencies and contradictions evident in the real world require the economist to make choices about which models to adopt in certain circumstances and when not to rigidly adhere to a single approach.


The book uses a clear and critical step by step analysis to consider the strengths and weaknesses of each model, in a way that enables students to develop their own critical engagement with macroeconomic policymaking. In so doing, the book provides an understanding of the world economy’s fluctuations since the global financial crisis that embraces the uncomfortable fact that inconsistency and the need for a multiplicity of models is central to macroeconomic policy choices.


For the many students bewildered by the disconnect between the models in their textbooks and the policy choices so hotly debated in the press, the book will be essential reading.

Health economics has become an established field of enquiry over recent years and is now an important contributor to normative health policy, and decisions concerning the allocation of resources and the quality of healthcare provision across the world.

Medical Economics, written by two physicians who are also qualified economists, introduces readers to the core economic considerations in healthcare provision and management. Addressing concerns that are relevant to both the individual and to public health, the authors draw on a wider range of economic tools and analytical frameworks than typically offered by standard textbooks. Combining thought experiments with real-world examples they illustrate the healthcare challenges facing today’s policy-makers.

The book is aimed specifically at courses in medicine, public health, and healthcare management and administration, but also at economists looking for a broader perspective on healthcare systems, including healthcare financing, markets, the role of the state and other macroeconomic considerations, evaluation methods, healthcare technology, paying for medical care, health insurance and ethical issues.

Although the asset management industry has come under increasing scrutiny since the financial crisis it still remains poorly understood and investment scandals continue to headline in the financial press. Whereas most literature on the industry focuses on the technical end – how managers invest and what tips others can glean – this book explores the way these businesses operate as businesses and how they make their money.



The book explains how the industry is organized, how firms generate revenues through various types of fund, fees and charges and what cost pressures they face. It investigates the nature of their client relationships, the role played by star investors and the requirement for firms to integrate non-financial considerations into their investment process. The inherent tensions and potential conflicts of interest within asset managers that seek to keep both clients and shareholders happy is also examined. The book concludes by considering how the industry is evolving, the role of regulation and where it is struggling to change.



Suitable for students of business and finance, those working in allied areas of the finance sector, and for anyone with a general interest in how financial institutions and markets operate, the book offers readers a balanced and incisive guide to the economics of an industry that globally controls more than $100 trillion of financial assets and a critical appraisal of the sector’s future.

Productivity looms large in public policy discussions yet many find themselves hard-pressed to explain exactly what the term means. Even within economics, its nature and significance is contested and the focus of complex debate. Michael Haynes cuts through the jargon and political sloganeering to provide a detailed examination of the concept, how it is used and why it is held by economists to be so important in evaluating the health of economies.

The book explores why productivity grows or fails to grow in certain contexts, in particular how real world variables can interact with measurements of efficiency and output. The difficulties of measuring its scope are examined alongside the larger question of whether growth in productivity is sustainable, both at the level of national economies and globally. Whether productivity remains the motor of economic growth that it once was and continues to be the most appropriate economic indicator for modern economies is shown to be a key consideration.

For anyone searching for a clear, engaging and level-headed guide to one of the most important metrics for understanding economic growth, this book will be warmly welcomed.

Banks have been at the heart of economic activity for centuries, but since the 2008 financial crisis scrutiny of their activities and regulation of their actions has become the focus of fervent academic, policy and political activity. This focus takes for granted the existence and nature of banks.

In Regulating Banks, Andrew Whitworth looks one stage deeper to question what a bank really is, and what the implications of that are. He argues that the institutional form of a bank represents the political compromise of a specific time and place - and can therefore change. This has implications for financial stability. Far from creating stability, he argues, the regulatory impulse of policy-makers inevitably leads to greater financial instability.

Whitworth examines the postwar period of UK banking to show how regulation influences the nature of banks as much as their behaviour. Regulation, by changing the nature of what is regulated, encourages banks and other actors over time to alter their behaviour, which leads to future boom and bust cycles. These cycles then require further regulation to rein in the disruption their new pattern of behaviour inevitably instigates.

Regulating Banks reveals the cyclical nature of banking regulation, the inherent mismatch between political impulses and market reactions, and the price banks, banking and society pay for such instability.

The music industry is one of the most dynamic and fascinating business sectors. Its business model has had to evolve and adapt to continually changing technologies that impact at every level from distribution to artist management. Its latest challenge has been the closure of live music venues during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The second edition of this much used introduction to the economic workings of the music business has been updated to include analysis of the impact of the pandemic as well as new trends in the industry, such as the increasing dominance of tech companies and big data and the growing importance of collective management organizations as market players, which has impacted on new business contracts. At a time when live performance outstrips music sales as the primary source of income for today’s musicians, this new edition also examines how different stakeholder positions have shifted.

The book remains a rigorous presentation of the industry’s business model, the core sectors of publishing, recording and live music, and the complex myriad of licensing and copyright arrangements that underpin the industry. The revenue streams of recording companies are analysed alongside the income stream of artists to show how changing formats and distribution platforms impact both industry profit margins and artists’ earnings.

There has been a recent resurgence in interest in the theorization of labour regimes in various disciplines. This has taken the form of a concern to understand the role that labour regimes play in the structuring, organization and dynamics of global systems of production and reproduction. The concept has a long heritage that can be traced back to the 1970s and the contributions to this book seek to develop further this emerging field.

The book traces the intellectual development of labour regime concepts across various disciplines, notably political economy, development studies, sociology and geography. Building on these foundations it considers conceptual debates around labour regimes and global production relating to issues of scale, informality, gender, race, social reproduction, ecology and migration, and offers new insights into the work conditions of global production chains from Amazon's warehouses in the United States, to industrial production networks in the Global South, and to the dormitory towns of migrant workers in Czechia. It also explores recent mobilizations of labour regime analysis in relation to methods, theory and research practice.

Health economics has become an established field of enquiry over recent years and is now an important contributor to normative health policy, and decisions concerning the allocation of resources and the quality of healthcare provision across the world.

Medical Economics, written by two physicians who are also qualified economists, introduces readers to the core economic considerations in healthcare provision and management. Addressing concerns that are relevant to both the individual and to public health, the authors draw on a wider range of economic tools and analytical frameworks than typically offered by standard textbooks. Combining thought experiments with real-world examples they illustrate the healthcare challenges facing today’s policy-makers.

The book is aimed specifically at courses in medicine, public health, and healthcare management and administration, but also at economists looking for a broader perspective on healthcare systems, including healthcare financing, markets, the role of the state and other macroeconomic considerations, evaluation methods, healthcare technology, paying for medical care, health insurance and ethical issues.

Understanding how we take economic decisions and how we depart from rational choice theory has become increasingly important to understanding the workings of the economy at all levels. The concept of bounded rationality has been central to that endeavour and is used in economic models to shed light on real-life behaviour, which has led to specific policy implications that would otherwise have gone unappreciated.

This introduction presents the key concepts and approaches adopted in the field of bounded rationality. The exposition is non-technical and free from any mathematical expressions and workings. The focus throughout is primarily on the behaviour of individuals or organizations within given situations rather than on macroeconomic concerns. The book examines how the field has evolved since its beginnings and assesses the strengths and weaknesses of its current research programme, including its relationship with behavioural economics.

The book is excellent preparatory reading for degree-level courses in economics as well as specific courses in behavioural economics and philosophy of economics.

The growing economic power of government has prompted many studies to seek to establish the optimum size of government and how it might relate to economic growth, productivity and inflation.

Václav Rybácek examines how these studies have used national accounts and officially published statistics to invariably underestimate the size of government, which has lead to erroneous economic policy recommendations and ultimately to an unrealistic assessment of a government’s ability to meet its debts. The book shows how the methodology of macroeconomic statistics has failed to keep pace with the expansion of government and has misallocated, for example, many public producers in the field of financial services, to the corporate sector. Even central banks conducting government policy are shown to stand outside official figures on the size of government. Similarly, when showing the relative size of government, the choice of denominator, such as GDP, can further lead to underestimating government size.

Drawing on Austrian economic theory, in particular in relation to market operation, the book offers a more robust methodology for the measurement of government, which is then used to recalculate fiscal indicators and GDP in order to present a more appropriate set of data for the analysis of public sector dynamics in the majority of EU countries.

Syed Mansoob Murshed has been at the forefront of research in the rational choice approach to conflict. His pioneering work over many years has demonstrated that armed conflict is inseparable from inequality and economic development.

This book brings together Murshed’s key economic writings on conflict and includes work on conflict causation, sustaining peace agreements, the relationship of conflict and economic progress, the trade–conflict nexus, the effects of conflict on financial deepening and fiscal capacity, as well as case studies of everyday violence and transnational terrorism. The essays cover both theoretical ideas, critical literature reviews, mathematical modelling, and crossnational and subnational econometric empirical analysis.

The enduring nature of war and conflict and uneven economic outcomes make Murshed’s work of lasting significance.

Before the Great Financial Crisis of 2008–09, significant reductions in official interest rates typically proved sufficient to generate sustainable economic recoveries from downturns. However, with economies and financial markets in freefall during the crisis despite a cut in interest rates to effectively zero, policymakers in some advanced economies launched a major new tool called quantitative easing (QE). This involved central banks purchasing huge amounts of financial assets.

This book offers a thorough and perspicacious analysis of QE, which has become a recovery method of last resort. Whilst it was successful in averting another Great Depression and stimulating growth, it remains controversial and continues to promote widespread debate in economics, financial, and political-economy circles. This book is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand central banking in the national economy.

Drawing on comparative detail from Europe, North America, and the rest of the world, Driving Change provides a nuanced overview of the UK’s modern transport system and the role of business models and policy choices in its evolution. The common features of mobility and travel in developed economies are highlighted in order to provide a balanced appraisal of possible future developments.

The book offers a detailed consideration of the potential of new technologies – electric propulsion, digital platforms and autonomous vehicles – to offer solutions to the intractable challenges that accompany high levels of car ownership, as well as their likely impact on business and transport policy.

Driving Change is a rich analysis of the modern state of transportation and will be welcomed by students of transport studies and policy professionals tasked with developing infrastructure and the growth of the transportation industry.

The fishing industry’s critical dependence on the natural environment makes it very different from other economic sectors. How it can optimally exploit a common resource while ensuring its sustainability raises many economic challenges. This book, suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate courses on fisheries economics and management, provides an introduction to the economics of the fishing industry and the role of fisheries in the world economy.

The book’s primary focus is on capture fisheries, although the discussion brings in wider aquaculture for comparative analysis. The key economic concepts that drive the industry, most notably sustainable yield, are explained in detail, before examining how the industry puts them into practice in a complex regulatory environment. The variability of fish stocks is considered and case studies of some spectacular stock crashes are discussed. The law of the sea is explained and how the movement of fish stocks across ocean boundaries has created regulatory bodies to manage international fisheries. At the heart of this management lies the quota system and the book outlines how it works and how, controversially, such quotas have become transferable.

The book offers readers a comprehensive and rigorous guide to the economic considerations motivating the industry and highlights the environmental challenges facing the sector as global consumption of fish continues to rise.

The European Central Bank administers monetary policy for the eurozone and is tasked with maintaining price stability by keeping inflation below 2 per cent. This brief mandate belies the complexity of managing the monetary policy for the 19 member states of the euro, not to mention the political implications thereof.

This book sets out the history, development and day-to-day workings of this key institutional pillar of the European Union. It assesses its work, independence, the policies and instruments at its disposal and the evolution of its role during, and after, the eurozone crisis of 2010. Incomplete monetary union, Germany's hegemonic ambitions and different economic policies from individual member countries are shown to pose formidable challenges to the ECB's macroeconomic management.

With its emphasis on the centrality of fundamental uncertainty and the resulting desire for liquid assets, post-Keynesian economics offers important insights into understanding how modern economies work, placing money and banking at their heart, exactly as any realistic account would do.

In this advanced introduction, Matteo Iannizzotto revisits the contributions of post-Keynesian ideas to such central issues as the inescapable condition of uncertainty in economic decisions, the theory of liquidity preference, effective demand, endogenous money supply, and the financial instability hypothesis. In each case, the author traces the foundations in the work of Keynes and presents the strength of post-Keynesian ideas of later authors like Kaldor, Minsky and Weintraub in comparison with the corresponding models of mainstream economics and shows their greater explanatory power particularly in the light of the recent global financial crisis.

The cultural industries and their products and services make a significant contribution to the global economy and are seen as strategic sectors for sustainable economic growth. However, industries such as art, design, film, music, performing arts, publishing, television and radio, present particular challenges for economic analysis. They can be goods or services that are both public and private, protected by copyright and freely available, consumed and created, as well as susceptible to fashion and technological development.

In this fascinating introduction to the cultural economy, Christiane Hellmanzik examines the market for creative work and reveals the economic relationships between human creativity, intellectual property and technology. Through the careful use of case studies, the book explores the core economic considerations such as supply and demand, competition and pricing, alongside macro trends such as globalization, digitalization and the internet, which are changing the industry’s business models.

The cultural industries and their products and services make a significant contribution to the global economy and are seen as strategic sectors for sustainable economic growth. However, industries such as art, design, film, music, performing arts, publishing, television and radio, present particular challenges for economic analysis. They can be goods or services that are both public and private, protected by copyright and freely available, consumed and created, as well as susceptible to fashion and technological development.

In this fascinating introduction to the cultural economy, Christiane Hellmanzik examines the market for creative work and reveals the economic relationships between human creativity, intellectual property and technology. Through the careful use of case studies, the book explores the core economic considerations such as supply and demand, competition and pricing, alongside macro trends such as globalization, digitalization and the internet, which are changing the industry’s business models.

Why are British banks so risk averse when it comes to providing long-term loan finance to businesses? In Europe the dominance of bank lending in the financing of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) is well-observed. Yet in the UK exactly the opposite is the case, where most SME funding is via bank overdrafts and credit cards.

The roots of this significant difference lie partly in the historical, institutional, political and cultural structure of the British banking system, and in parallel explanatory factors in the UK SME population, but the real mystery is why, in the twentieth century, there appears to have been no significant change in the attitudes of British banks towards providing long-term loan finance to SMEs. Indeed, this risk aversion might have been expected to alter during the postwar period and the substantial expansion of consumer demand and expanded commodity production, but it did not.

This book explores not only how the historical formation of British banking structures produced such a relatively risk-averse arrangement compared to other European countries and the United States, but also why this banking attitude has persisted to the present day. The book concludes with a suite of recommendations necessary for British banks to provide a more balanced mix of financial provision to SMEs.

The theory of general equilibrium offers a simplified guide to how real economies function: it describes how price, demand, supply and production interact in multiple markets and tend towards a state of equilibrium. The first attempt to model this interaction was made in the late nineteenth century, but it remained a largely theoretical exercise until the computer age, when large amounts of data could be processed to model national economies on an unprecedented scale.

Yves Balasko, one of the key pioneers in the field, offers an accessible introduction to general equilibrium theory and some of its most important developments of the past fifty years. The book begins with an historical presentation of general equilibrium theory that includes the two theorems of welfare economics and also a new proof of the existence of an equilibrium. The central chapters examine the main results of the theory of general equilibrium that can be obtained by following the equilibrium manifold and natural projection approach. The final chapter demonstrates the potential for extending the general equilibrium model beyond the market economy by introducing uncertainty and contingent commodities.

Written for students taking courses in economic theory and modelling who have relatively limited mathematical proficiency, the book fills a gap between forbidding technical expositions and the less rigorous elementary ones. As a masterly summation of developments in equilibrium theory by one of the subject’s leading figures, it will also be welcomed by economists working across applied and computable general equilibrium analysis.

The availability of low-cost energy from fossil fuels – in particular oil – has been the driving force behind postwar global economic growth, such that the petroleum industry has some of the world’s largest companies. This book examines the economics of the oil and gas industry, from exploration, development and production, to transportation, refining and marketing. At each stage of the value chain, the key economic costs and considerations are presented in order to provide the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the workings of the industry.

The book examines some of the unique economic challenges the industry faces, including negotiating international contracts with host countries (to gain access to hydrocarbons), managing the risks of recovery, implementing cross-border pipelines, dealing with huge variations in the taxation of refined products, and reacting to the effect of price control and subsidization in the OPEC nations which can create massive volatility in pricing. The search for low-carbon fuels, the impact of shale gas, the prospect of finite reserves, and the global political realities of the competing demands of oil-importing and oil-exporting countries are shown to make the sector high risk, but the economic rewards can be huge.

China’s transformation over the past four decades has been unprecedented. The vision of its leaders for the next three decades is unprecedented too, as China seeks to fashion an advanced economy without significant political and social liberalization.

Stephen Morgan provides a wide-ranging examination of China’s remarkable economic history from the time of the great divergence to the present day. Alongside the familiar story of GDP growth, he considers a comprehensive range of issues, including business management, energy use, foreign direct investment, government, innovation and consumerism as well as social and demographic factors such as social networks, health, education and migration and their interlinked challenges for the Chinese state. The specifics of development are examined – capitalism from above and below and its regional variances – as well as notable consequences, including growing inequality and severe pollution. The book also assesses the challenges to China’s continued growth, including its ageing and shrinking workforce (and rising dependency ratio), the constraints on innovation and raising productivity, as well as its ambitious international plans.

The book provides an accessible and authoritative survey of China’s recent economic history and the workings of its unique political economy suitable for courses in Asian business and economy, Chinese history and East Asian studies.

Although still the world’s third largest economy, Japan continues to feel the effects of the collapse of a massive asset price bubble in the early 1990s. In recent years further setbacks, including both the Asian and global financial crises, and the 2011 Fukushima earthquake, have only added to the economy’s difficulties and made its prospects under Abenomics at best mixed.

Hiroaki Richard Watanabe examines the ups and downs of Japan’s postwar economic history to offer an up-to-date and authoritative guide to the workings of Japan’s economy. The book highlights the country’s distinct business networks and its unique state–market relationship. It explores the characteristic institutional complementarity that exists among different sectors and business practices and gives particular attention to human factors, such as labour market dualism, gender discrimination and migration. Although often associated in western minds with futuristic automated efficiency, Japan’s economy, Watanabe shows, retains many inefficient and peculiar business practices that do not comply with global standards.

The book provides readers with a concise survey of Japan’s recent economic history, the economy’s characteristic features and the challenges it faces.

Understanding how we take economic decisions and how we depart from rational choice theory has become increasingly important to understanding the workings of the economy at all levels. The concept of bounded rationality has been central to that endeavour and is used in economic models to shed light on real-life behaviour, which has led to specific policy implications that would otherwise have gone unappreciated.

This introduction presents the key concepts and approaches adopted in the field of bounded rationality. The exposition is non-technical and free from any mathematical expressions and workings. The focus throughout is primarily on the behaviour of individuals or organizations within given situations rather than on macroeconomic concerns. The book examines how the field has evolved since its beginnings and assesses the strengths and weaknesses of its current research programme, including its relationship with behavioural economics.

The book is excellent preparatory reading for degree-level courses in economics as well as specific courses in behavioural economics and philosophy of economics.

Without access to mainstream financial services, people pay more for goods and services and have less choice. The impacts of exclusion are not just financial but also affect education, employment, health, housing, and overall well-being.

Limited access to financial services also impedes economic development in impoverished communities, which has prompted policy-makers, private institutions and NGOs to develop strategies to address financial inclusion. Drawing on a series of illustrative case studies – from India’s micro-credit industry to mobile banking in South Africa – Samuel Kirwan examines the various types of policy implementation in developed and developing countries, and considers the social impact and efficacy of such economic intervention. While acknowledging the risks and pitfalls of government-backed and private financial inclusion practices, the book makes a strong case for the value of financial inclusion both as a conceptual term for clarifying the stakes of material poverty and as a policy tool that creates a space for meaningful changes in economic practices.

The book provides valuable insight into the role of government policy in combatting inequality and is a welcome resource for researchers examining the socio-economic dimensions of poverty and attempts to address it.

Germany’s public savings banks – Sparkassen – are a remarkable and puzzling phenomena. No other advanced industrial country relies as heavily on such small, public financial institutions to fuel its economy and how is it that such small institutions can drive one of the biggest and most successful economies in the world?

In theory, their diminutive size should hinder their ability to function in an environment where they compete with the capital and muscle of major international banks. Yet at the height of the financial crisis, when other banks drastically reduced lending, new loans made by Sparkassen increased as they continued to provide liquidity and lend to start-up firms. How have they managed to survive the economic turmoil and global pressures of the last few decades? What has enabled them to stay at the heart of the German economy? In a period of neoliberal “too-big-to-fail” thinking, how have these relics of an ordoliberal past managed to flourish?

Mark Cassell answers these and many other questions in his exploration of the unique entity that is Germany’s public savings bank system and the lessons it offers to banking systems worldwide.

Without access to mainstream financial services, people pay more for goods and services and have less choice. The impacts of exclusion are not just financial but also affect education, employment, health, housing, and overall well-being.

Limited access to financial services also impedes economic development in impoverished communities, which has prompted policy-makers, private institutions and NGOs to develop strategies to address financial inclusion. Drawing on a series of illustrative case studies – from India’s micro-credit industry to mobile banking in South Africa – Samuel Kirwan examines the various types of policy implementation in developed and developing countries, and considers the social impact and efficacy of such economic intervention. While acknowledging the risks and pitfalls of government-backed and private financial inclusion practices, the book makes a strong case for the value of financial inclusion both as a conceptual term for clarifying the stakes of material poverty and as a policy tool that creates a space for meaningful changes in economic practices.

The book provides valuable insight into the role of government policy in combatting inequality and is a welcome resource for researchers examining the socio-economic dimensions of poverty and attempts to address it.

Credit rating agencies (CRAs) assess the creditworthiness of debt issuers on financial markets. They are private companies and the ratings they issue are judgements about the prospect of repayment of debt by an issuer in time and in full. A rating is not an investment recommendation, but it is an opinion about the creditworthiness of a financial product or an issuing bank, government, supra- or sub-national institution.

In recent years CRAs have gained an authority in bond markets that far surpasses their original design. The financial crisis of 2008 thrust the CRAs into the spotlight as their highly rated financial products turned out to be toxic assets. CRAs were blamed not only for their excessively optimistic ratings, but also for their complicity in creating them.

This short book introduces and explores the complex world of the credit rating industry: how it works, how it has evolved, the role it played in the financial crisis, and how it is regulated. Giulia Mennillo shows, as constitutive actors of global financial capitalism, CRAs have a social and political relevance that reaches well beyond finance into areas of transport, infrastructure, education and health and their impact is emblematic of the increasing financialization of our world.

Blockchain technology has the potential to disrupt digital interaction across our economy and society. As the internet has changed our lives, the potential for blockchain and distributed ledger technologies to do the same is considerable. Fred Steinmetz, Lennart Ante and Ingo Fiedler assess this rapidly developing technology and its imminent economic and societal impact.

The ideas behind blockchain technology stem from an open-source movement and build on existing technology to facilitate the exchange of value in general and assets in particular via a protocol on top of the internet. Current platform-based business structures face the risk of being replaced by evolving decentralized ecosystems and individuals are set to become empowered by sovereignty over their digital data and footprints.

The book begins by explaining the key concepts of blockchain technology and presents an overview of the involved technical and economic elements. These form the basis for a discussion of the socio-economic implications of this new technology. This is followed by an in-depth analysis of significant case studies in the sectors of energy, digital identity, capital markets, logistics and gambling that outline the risks and benefits of the technology. The book strives to be non-technical and accessible, and to demystify the functionalities of blockchains and their potential for a range of readers in the wider social sciences.

Austerity has dominated economic debate since the financial crisis of 2008. Governments have implemented austerity policies by reducing their spending on goods and services, increasing taxation and cutting welfare budgets.

John Fender explains how austerity (or "fiscal consolidation") works in theory and how it has played out in practice especially in the UK and the eurozone. He provides a clear and rigorous guide to the principles and mechanisms of austerity economics and offers a balanced account of the economic thinking behind contentious policy decisions.

Boris Johnson has said that the UK government "has absolutely no intention of returning to the 'A-word'", but with the Covid-19 crisis likely to result in much more government debt, it will be difficult to avoid more austerity. Understanding the impact of austerity policies is more important than ever and this book offers a first step on that path. For anyone seeking answers to such questions as: "What can we learn from the UK’s economic history that is relevant to current policy?", "Is austerity ever necessary or desirable?" and "Can the harmful effects of austerity programmes be mitigated?" then this book will be welcome reading.

Blockchain technology has the potential to disrupt digital interaction across our economy and society. As the internet has changed our lives, the potential for blockchain and distributed ledger technologies to do the same is considerable. Fred Steinmetz, Lennart Ante and Ingo Fiedler assess this rapidly developing technology and its imminent economic and societal impact.

The ideas behind blockchain technology stem from an open-source movement and build on existing technology to facilitate the exchange of value in general and assets in particular via a protocol on top of the internet. Current platform-based business structures face the risk of being replaced by evolving decentralized ecosystems and individuals are set to become empowered by sovereignty over their digital data and footprints.

The book begins by explaining the key concepts of blockchain technology and presents an overview of the involved technical and economic elements. These form the basis for a discussion of the socio-economic implications of this new technology. This is followed by an in-depth analysis of significant case studies in the sectors of energy, digital identity, capital markets, logistics and gambling that outline the risks and benefits of the technology. The book strives to be non-technical and accessible, and to demystify the functionalities of blockchains and their potential for a range of readers in the wider social sciences.

The “informal” economy – economic activity and income outside government regulation, taxation and observation – is, by its very nature, difficult to quantify. Recent estimates suggest it accounts, in OECD countries, for around 13% of national income (in the UK, the equivalent of £150 billion) and in developing nations it can make up as much as three-quarters of all non-agricultural employment. Whatever the exact figures, it is clear that the informal economy plays a significant role in national incomes (eventhough excluded from calculations of GDP or GNP) and affects a large share of the global workforce.

Colin C. Williams provides an authoritative introduction to the topic, explaining what the informal economy is (and what it isn’t) and how it can best be measured. Taking a global perspective, he examines its characteristics in developed, developing and transitional economies, and looks at its role as a driver of economic growth. The theoretical underpinnings are explored, from conceptual origins in the development models of the 1950s, through to present-day discussions, which question whether a formalised economy is always the ideal.

The book considers the economic motivations of the informal economy workforce, which may include tax evasion, circumventing regulations and maintaining state benefits, and assesses the different policy options available to governments to combat them, whether a punitive policy of deterrence, or one of accommodation that recognises the value of the sector in generating income and in meeting the needs of poor consumers.

The book provides a masterly summation of the published research on the informal economy and an expert assessment of the key areas for research going forward. It will be welcomed by students taking courses in development economics, economic growth, labour economics, welfare economics and public policy.

The theory of general equilibrium offers a simplified guide to how real economies function: it describes how price, demand, supply and production interact in multiple markets and tend towards a state of equilibrium. The first attempt to model this interaction was made in the late nineteenth century, but it remained a largely theoretical exercise until the computer age, when large amounts of data could be processed to model national economies on an unprecedented scale.

Yves Balasko, one of the key pioneers in the field, offers an accessible introduction to general equilibrium theory and some of its most important developments of the past fifty years. The book begins with an historical presentation of general equilibrium theory that includes the two theorems of welfare economics and also a new proof of the existence of an equilibrium. The central chapters examine the main results of the theory of general equilibrium that can be obtained by following the equilibrium manifold and natural projection approach. The final chapter demonstrates the potential for extending the general equilibrium model beyond the market economy by introducing uncertainty and contingent commodities.

Written for students taking courses in economic theory and modelling who have relatively limited mathematical proficiency, the book fills a gap between forbidding technical expositions and the less rigorous elementary ones. As a masterly summation of developments in equilibrium theory by one of the subject’s leading figures, it will also be welcomed by economists working across applied and computable general equilibrium analysis.

The US subprime mortgage crisis, by nearly causing the collapse of the global financial system during the 2007–08 financial crisis, clearly revealed that household debt management is critical to the stability of the international economy. The configuration of mortgage finance systems of European economies, from the UK to Sweden to Spain, have profound effects on national macroeconomic and political outcomes.

In this book, Gregory Fuller reveals how national housing systems diverge in terms of their commodification and financialization: mortgages are far more common in some systems than others; some encourage families to treat housing as a tradeable asset while others do not; and certain states provide extensive social housing programmes while others offer virtually none. These differences are shown to have an impact on households’ economic precarity, macroeconomic volatility, and ultimately on their political preferences. Drawing on these comparisons, Fuller offers a number of policy suggestions intended to weaken the links between housing, economic instability, and inequality.

Austerity has dominated economic debate since the financial crisis of 2008. Governments have implemented austerity policies by reducing their spending on goods and services, increasing taxation and cutting welfare budgets.

John Fender explains how austerity (or "fiscal consolidation") works in theory and how it has played out in practice especially in the UK and the eurozone. He provides a clear and rigorous guide to the principles and mechanisms of austerity economics and offers a balanced account of the economic thinking behind contentious policy decisions.

Boris Johnson has said that the UK government "has absolutely no intention of returning to the 'A-word'", but with the Covid-19 crisis likely to result in much more government debt, it will be difficult to avoid more austerity. Understanding the impact of austerity policies is more important than ever and this book offers a first step on that path. For anyone seeking answers to such questions as: "What can we learn from the UK’s economic history that is relevant to current policy?", "Is austerity ever necessary or desirable?" and "Can the harmful effects of austerity programmes be mitigated?" then this book will be welcome reading.

The rise of behavioural approaches in economics has been one of most significant developments in the study of economic decision-making in recent years. The increasingly acknowledged failings of standard models of choice to explain economic decisions has prompted economists to incorporate into their analysis psychological insights into individual behaviour, such as social cognitive and emotional biases. This book introduces the topic of behavioural economics to a beginning readership, explaining its approach and methodology and assessing its successes and weaknesses.

The book begins by tracing the evolution of the field from its origins in Adam Smith’s moral sentiments through the work of Herbert Simon to Daniel Kahneman and Richard Thaler today. The book explores how behavioural economics has advanced our understanding of human preferences including notions of fairness, reciprocity and inequality aversion, and the mental processes involved in decision making, which vary with the complexity of the decision and the ability of the decision-maker to process the information. The decision-making of individuals within social and economic groups is explored, including financial practitioners and what this can mean for financial markets. Finally the book looks at the ways in which findings from behavioural economics have been used to alter the decisions people make, such as the nudge approach, and the ethics of such persuasion.

The automotive sector represents more than a simple industry. It embodies the economic and technological power of nations, the lifestyle and consumption patterns of societies, the dynamics of urban and territorial development, and acts as a national barometer of economic success and failure.

This book explains how the car industry works and analyses the challenges both for the sector and for the economies that rely on the industry for jobs, growth and innovation. It explores an industry that has been under severe pressure in industrialized countries for many years – factories have closed, jobs have gone and brands and manufacturers have disappeared – yet world production has never been higher, reaching new peaks annually.

The authors investigate how western and Japanese manufacturers still dominate the market, despite the challenge posed by Korean, Chinese and Indian competitors. They examine how changing environmental policies and consumer preferences are moving the industry towards electric vehicles; how usage patterns are evolving, favouring car-sharing; and how advances in electronics and digitalization are set to further reshape the sector with autonomous and self-driving vehicles.

The book offers readers a short, non-technical guide to the workings of a fast-moving industry that remains of huge importance to both national and global economies.

Finance has long been an integral part of the capitalist economy, yet since the 1970s the realm of finance has burgeoned, reaching well beyond its traditional funding roles. Finance now reaches into all aspects of economic life from the everyday activity of the individual, to the behaviour of corporations and the decisions made for society as a whole. The power and fragility of the financial sector are seen by the simple fact that when things go wrong, it can bring down banks, currencies, and governments, plunging countries into generations of debt and hardship.


Malcolm Sawyer offers a comprehensive survey of the impact of financialization on economic growth and society. The book draws on and distills a remarkable range of research to provide readers with a guide to current thinking about the place of finance in the wider macroeconomy and considers the prospects for definancialization and a future role that is less pervasive.

Global financial capitalism has eroded the moral economy on which all economic exchanges ultimately depend. The principles of reciprocity, responsibility and redistribution, which for centuries defined the market place, have been increasingly pushed aside by a growth model that places the pursuit of profit above all else.

Luigino Bruni and Stefano Zamagni draw on a rich Italian tradition of civic humanism to advocate a more well-mannered type of economic market – a civil economy – one that places well-being, virtue and the common good alongside more familiar economic goals. They provide a succinct introduction to the civil economy approach and outline the thought and ideas of some of its pioneers and main representatives. The many different fields of application of the civil economy, from the determination of gross domestic product to the management of common goods, from welfare to the organization of production and consumption, are considered.

Unlike many post-growth or degrowth movements, rather than seek to replace the market, civil economy seeks to find solutions to social problems within the market, while maximizing human values and minimizing government intervention. It is a distinct and valuable approach, and one that offers individuals, corporations and governments a framework for a humane and socially accountable, yet productive and competitive, system of markets.

The “gig economy” is a relatively recent term coined to describe a range of working arrangements that have previously been denoted as precarious, flexible and contingent. These may include casual workers, temporary agency workers, those on zero-hours contracts and dependent contractors.

This books seeks to get behind the contemporary buzz surrounding the term and provide some theoretical and empirical analysis of the gig work phenomenon. The book seeks to assess more critically some of the rhetorical claims made about gig work and to provide a balanced appraisal of the ramifications for individuals, employers and the economy and society in general of an increasingly insecure workforce. The regulatory framework, in particular, is examined and is shown to have lagged behind crucial developments in the gig economy, with many labour laws still historically rooted to the notion that a worker has to be an employee to be covered by employment rights.

The authors show that in many respects there is nothing new about the gig economy and that its growth in recent years was in some sense predictable. Perhaps its real significance, they argue, is its potential as a business model to “gig-ize” other business operations far beyond relatively low-skilled work. When combined with automation and digitalization, the gig economy presents us with an opportunity to re-evalute our understanding of the nature of work.

Vera Zamagni charts the remarkable story of European economic growth from the birth of industrialization through to the present day. Setting European events within the wider context of world economic progress and alongside developments in Asia, Eastern Europe and the United States, she provides an up-to-date and authoritative survey suitable for course use.

The book begins with an outline of the economic landscape of the late Middle Ages before exploring the process of European industrialization, including how the British model was replicated across Europe, and why Britain was unable to maintain its position relative to other economies, in particular the United States. The advent of global finance is examined and the economic impact of world war and revolution is assessed. European reconstruction and integration is analysed alongside the decline of Russia and the growth of the Asian economies. The book ends with an assessment of the impact of the global crash of 2008 and the subsequent crisis of the Eurozone. Throughout her analysis, Zamagni shows how the social and economic institutions and values of European civilization catalyzed economic progress. That these same structures are now threatened makes this history particularly timely.

The resource curse, or paradox of plenty, refers to the long-established notion central in development economics that countries rich in natural resources, particularly minerals and fuels, perform less well economically than countries with fewer natural resources. In other words, resources are an economic curse rather than a blessing.

This short primer explores the complexities of this idea and the debates that surround it, in particular under what conditions the resource curse might operate, if not universal. Discussion ranges over the nature of resource booms, the benefits and costs of export-led growth, the problems of deindustrialization and manufacturing base erosion, rent-seeking behaviour and corruption and the empirical evidence of the effects of natural resource dependence on growth. The book also considers the links between resource rents and the risk of conflict and civil war.

The treatment draws throughout on a range of illustrative examples from across the developed and developing world and offers an authoritative introduction to one of the most perplexing issues for economic growth.

The notion of marginalism is central to modern economic theory. Its emergence, in the 1870s, underpinned the change from classical economics to modern (micro)economics, described by Schumpeter as a “revolution”. This book explores the origins of the concept, its development and role in modern economics and shows why the marginalist approach is much more than a set of mathematical rules.

The book examines how marginalism and its development of calculus came about in a variety of different arenas, including as a reaction to Ricardo’s dominant theory of rents, in von Thunen’s location model, in the writings of German and French authors, both within the mainstream and outside it, before going on to look in detail at the work of Jevons, Walras and Menger, the economists most closely associated with the marginal revolution.

By exploring the origins and development of the marginalist approach within the history of economic thought, rather than seeking to explain it in forbidding formal terms, the book is better able to show students the wider importance of the marginalist approach in economic theory and its far-reaching societal implications in terms of the distribution of wages and capital. For anyone who has struggled with the technicalities of microeconomic theory, this approach will be warmly welcomed.

We have become accustomed to economists and politicians talking about “market forces” as if they are immutable laws of the universe. But what exactly is “the market”? Originally an abstract idea from economic theory – the locus of supply and demand – it has come to inform the way we speak about our relationship to the economic system as a whole.

Matthew Watson unpacks the concept to ask what does it really mean to allow ourselves to submit to market forces. And does economic theory really provide insights into the market institutions that shape our everyday life? In tackling these questions, the book provides a major contribution to a deeper appreciation of the dominant economic language of our time, challenging the idea that we can simply defer to the “logic of the market”.

The rise of behavioural approaches in economics has been one of most significant developments in the study of economic decision-making in recent years. The increasingly acknowledged failings of standard models of choice to explain economic decisions has prompted economists to incorporate into their analysis psychological insights into individual behaviour, such as social cognitive and emotional biases. This book introduces the topic of behavioural economics to a beginning readership, explaining its approach and methodology and assessing its successes and weaknesses.

The book begins by tracing the evolution of the field from its origins in Adam Smith’s moral sentiments through the work of Herbert Simon to Daniel Kahneman and Richard Thaler today. The book explores how behavioural economics has advanced our understanding of human preferences including notions of fairness, reciprocity and inequality aversion, and the mental processes involved in decision making, which vary with the complexity of the decision and the ability of the decision-maker to process the information. The decision-making of individuals within social and economic groups is explored, including financial practitioners and what this can mean for financial markets. Finally the book looks at the ways in which findings from behavioural economics have been used to alter the decisions people make, such as the nudge approach, and the ethics of such persuasion.

The construction of housing, commercial property and infrastructure projects – roads, bridges, tunnels, railways, airports – for both the private and public sectors is one of the biggest industries in the world. It contributes around 10 per cent of world GDP, employs 7 per cent of the global workforce, and consumes around 20 per cent of the world’s energy. It is also a highly fragmented industry with very low profit margins and a high risk of failure for the many firms operating in its complex supply chain.

Stephen Gruneberg and Noble Francis present an up-to-date analysis of how construction markets operate, how firms collaborate on projects, and how their business models work. They explore the many distinctive features of the economics of the industry, such as the use of cost-reduction rather than profit-maximizing behaviour, the processes of tendering and procurement, and the often cyclical nature of demand. Particular challenges for the industry, such as the frequency of disputes between firms and the low productivity of the sector, are shown to be the outcomes of a business model that tends to focus on the volatility of demand and managing risk at the expense of improving efficiency. As well as discussing industry-wide issues, the authors also examine how individual projects are costed.

The book offers authoritative analysis and expert insight into the economics of a much misunderstood industry and is suitable for a range of courses in business schools and departments of architecture and the built environment.

The resource curse, or paradox of plenty, refers to the long-established notion central in development economics that countries rich in natural resources, particularly minerals and fuels, perform less well economically than countries with fewer natural resources. In other words, resources are an economic curse rather than a blessing.

This short primer explores the complexities of this idea and the debates that surround it, in particular under what conditions the resource curse might operate, if not universal. Discussion ranges over the nature of resource booms, the benefits and costs of export-led growth, the problems of deindustrialization and manufacturing base erosion, rent-seeking behaviour and corruption and the empirical evidence of the effects of natural resource dependence on growth. The book also considers the links between resource rents and the risk of conflict and civil war.

The treatment draws throughout on a range of illustrative examples from across the developed and developing world and offers an authoritative introduction to one of the most perplexing issues for economic growth.

The “gig economy” is a relatively recent term coined to describe a range of working arrangements that have previously been denoted as precarious, flexible and contingent. These may include casual workers, temporary agency workers, those on zero-hours contracts and dependent contractors.

This books seeks to get behind the contemporary buzz surrounding the term and provide some theoretical and empirical analysis of the gig work phenomenon. The book seeks to assess more critically some of the rhetorical claims made about gig work and to provide a balanced appraisal of the ramifications for individuals, employers and the economy and society in general of an increasingly insecure workforce. The regulatory framework, in particular, is examined and is shown to have lagged behind crucial developments in the gig economy, with many labour laws still historically rooted to the notion that a worker has to be an employee to be covered by employment rights.

The authors show that in many respects there is nothing new about the gig economy and that its growth in recent years was in some sense predictable. Perhaps its real significance, they argue, is its potential as a business model to “gig-ize” other business operations far beyond relatively low-skilled work. When combined with automation and digitalization, the gig economy presents us with an opportunity to re-evalute our understanding of the nature of work.

The term “degrowth” has emerged within ecological and other heterodox schools of economics as a critique of the idea (and ideology) of economic growth. Degrowth argues that economic growth is no longer desirable – its costs exceed its benefits – and advocates a transformation of economies so that they produce and consume less, differently and better.

Giorgos Kallis provides a clear and succinct guide to the central ideas of degrowth theory and explores what it would take for an economy to transition to a position that enables it to prosper without growth. The book examines how mainstream conceptualizations of the economy are challenged by degrowth theory and how degrowth draws on a multifaceted network of ideas across disciplines to shed new light on the economic process. The central claims of the degrowth literature are discussed alongside some key criticisms of them. Whether one agrees or disagrees with degrowth’s critique of economic growth, Kallis shows how it raises fundamental questions about the workings of capitalism that we can no longer afford to ignore.

As a broad introduction to the history of economic thought – based on courses the authors have taught for many years – this book provides a magisterial overview for students and teachers who have not had the opportunity to cover the development of the field of economics in its historical context.

The text is presented as a series of twenty-four lectures, which can be used as the basis for self-study or for the delivery of a course. Each lecture presents an outline of aims, a select bibliography, a chronology, an overview of between 3,000 and 4,000 words, and questions for further study or reflection.

Contemporary understanding of economic principles sheds little light on the manner in which past thinkers thought, so the reader is provided with the much-needed context behind the development of ideas, as well as being guided through the original writings of economists such as Smith, Jevons, Marshall, Robbins, Keynes and others. The emphasis is on the broad developing stream of economic argument from the seventeenth century to the present, seeking to emphasize a diversity that is sometimes suppressed in more conventional textbooks, which tend to organize their histories into sequences of schools of thought.

Backhouse and Tribe bring their considerable insight and knowledge to bear on the text, having honed their presentation to the needs of those with no previous background in the subject, without sacrificing analysis or rigour. The book will be warmly welcomed by students and teachers alike.

Much of economics is a top-down analysis that simplifies and reduces the huge varieties between individuals to a predictable range of characteristics that lend themselves to systematic analysis. This book eschews this conventional perspective, which sees national economies as simply agglomerations of the activities of millions of people, and instead explores the role played by the individual in the economy, in particular, how the individual experiences the economy. In so doing, the book is able to illuminate the economic landscape for the non-technical reader in a much more engaging and accessible way.

Steve Coulter examines those areas of our lives that most direcly connect with the economy – jobs, education, healthcare, housing, personal finance, welfare, consumption – and explores how the individual choices we make are determined. He shows how the things we experience, need and consume fit into a fast-changing and interdependent global economic setting and highlights the role of government and markets in shaping our lives.

The term “degrowth” has emerged within ecological and other heterodox schools of economics as a critique of the idea (and ideology) of economic growth. Degrowth argues that economic growth is no longer desirable – its costs exceed its benefits – and advocates a transformation of economies so that they produce and consume less, differently and better.

Giorgos Kallis provides a clear and succinct guide to the central ideas of degrowth theory and explores what it would take for an economy to transition to a position that enables it to prosper without growth. The book examines how mainstream conceptualizations of the economy are challenged by degrowth theory and how degrowth draws on a multifaceted network of ideas across disciplines to shed new light on the economic process. The central claims of the degrowth literature are discussed alongside some key criticisms of them. Whether one agrees or disagrees with degrowth’s critique of economic growth, Kallis shows how it raises fundamental questions about the workings of capitalism that we can no longer afford to ignore.

Much of economics is a top-down analysis that simplifies and reduces the huge varieties between individuals to a predictable range of characteristics that lend themselves to systematic analysis. This book eschews this conventional perspective, which sees national economies as simply agglomerations of the activities of millions of people, and instead explores the role played by the individual in the economy, in particular, how the individual experiences the economy. In so doing, the book is able to illuminate the economic landscape for the non-technical reader in a much more engaging and accessible way.

Steve Coulter examines those areas of our lives that most direcly connect with the economy – jobs, education, healthcare, housing, personal finance, welfare, consumption – and explores how the individual choices we make are determined. He shows how the things we experience, need and consume fit into a fast-changing and interdependent global economic setting and highlights the role of government and markets in shaping our lives.

As a broad introduction to the history of economic thought – based on courses the authors have taught for many years – this book provides a magisterial overview for students and teachers who have not had the opportunity to cover the development of the field of economics in its historical context.

The text is presented as a series of twenty-four lectures, which can be used as the basis for self-study or for the delivery of a course. Each lecture presents an outline of aims, a select bibliography, a chronology, an overview of between 3,000 and 4,000 words, and questions for further study or reflection.

Contemporary understanding of economic principles sheds little light on the manner in which past thinkers thought, so the reader is provided with the much-needed context behind the development of ideas, as well as being guided through the original writings of economists such as Smith, Jevons, Marshall, Robbins, Keynes and others. The emphasis is on the broad developing stream of economic argument from the seventeenth century to the present, seeking to emphasize a diversity that is sometimes suppressed in more conventional textbooks, which tend to organize their histories into sequences of schools of thought.

Backhouse and Tribe bring their considerable insight and knowledge to bear on the text, having honed their presentation to the needs of those with no previous background in the subject, without sacrificing analysis or rigour. The book will be warmly welcomed by students and teachers alike.

We have become accustomed to economists and politicians talking about “market forces” as if they are immutable laws of the universe. But what exactly is “the market”? Originally an abstract idea from economic theory – the locus of supply and demand – it has come to inform the way we speak about our relationship to the economic system as a whole.

Matthew Watson unpacks the concept to ask what does it really mean to allow ourselves to submit to market forces. And does economic theory really provide insights into the market institutions that shape our everyday life? In tackling these questions, the book provides a major contribution to a deeper appreciation of the dominant economic language of our time, challenging the idea that we can simply defer to the “logic of the market”.

The construction of housing, commercial property and infrastructure projects – roads, bridges, tunnels, railways, airports – for both the private and public sectors is one of the biggest industries in the world. It contributes around 10 per cent of world GDP, employs 7 per cent of the global workforce, and consumes around 20 per cent of the world’s energy. It is also a highly fragmented industry with very low profit margins and a high risk of failure for the many firms operating in its complex supply chain.

Stephen Gruneberg and Noble Francis present an up-to-date analysis of how construction markets operate, how firms collaborate on projects, and how their business models work. They explore the many distinctive features of the economics of the industry, such as the use of cost-reduction rather than profit-maximizing behaviour, the processes of tendering and procurement, and the often cyclical nature of demand. Particular challenges for the industry, such as the frequency of disputes between firms and the low productivity of the sector, are shown to be the outcomes of a business model that tends to focus on the volatility of demand and managing risk at the expense of improving efficiency. As well as discussing industry-wide issues, the authors also examine how individual projects are costed.

The book offers authoritative analysis and expert insight into the economics of a much misunderstood industry and is suitable for a range of courses in business schools and departments of architecture and the built environment.

The notion of marginalism is central to modern economic theory. Its emergence, in the 1870s, underpinned the change from classical economics to modern (micro)economics, described by Schumpeter as a “revolution”. This book explores the origins of the concept, its development and role in modern economics and shows why the marginalist approach is much more than a set of mathematical rules.

The book examines how marginalism and its development of calculus came about in a variety of different arenas, including as a reaction to Ricardo’s dominant theory of rents, in von Thunen’s location model, in the writings of German and French authors, both within the mainstream and outside it, before going on to look in detail at the work of Jevons, Walras and Menger, the economists most closely associated with the marginal revolution.

By exploring the origins and development of the marginalist approach within the history of economic thought, rather than seeking to explain it in forbidding formal terms, the book is better able to show students the wider importance of the marginalist approach in economic theory and its far-reaching societal implications in terms of the distribution of wages and capital. For anyone who has struggled with the technicalities of microeconomic theory, this approach will be warmly welcomed.

The automotive sector represents more than a simple industry. It embodies the economic and technological power of nations, the lifestyle and consumption patterns of societies, the dynamics of urban and territorial development, and acts as a national barometer of economic success and failure.

This book explains how the car industry works and analyses the challenges both for the sector and for the economies that rely on the industry for jobs, growth and innovation. It explores an industry that has been under severe pressure in industrialized countries for many years – factories have closed, jobs have gone and brands and manufacturers have disappeared – yet world production has never been higher, reaching new peaks annually.

The authors investigate how western and Japanese manufacturers still dominate the market, despite the challenge posed by Korean, Chinese and Indian competitors. They examine how changing environmental policies and consumer preferences are moving the industry towards electric vehicles; how usage patterns are evolving, favouring car-sharing; and how advances in electronics and digitalization are set to further reshape the sector with autonomous and self-driving vehicles.

The book offers readers a short, non-technical guide to the workings of a fast-moving industry that remains of huge importance to both national and global economies.

It is estimated that today some 2.7% of world GDP ($1.5 trillion) is spent on arms. In 2014 Lockheed Martin, the US defence contractor, had revenues of $45 billion – the equivalent of the GDP of Tunisia. This book explores the business behind these breathtaking figures and explains how the arms industry makes its money.

The book begins by defining the industry, explaining why the sector is important, outlining its prime contractors and key supply chains. Its cost categories (from R&D to maintenance), the role of technical innovation, and the sector’s dependence on the monopsony buying power of Government, are all examined. The structure-conduct and performance model is used to show the workings of the arms market and its various entry and exit conditions, and the sector’s performance is analysed through various indicators including exports, development time scales, cost overruns and profitability. The complex choice problems of domestic procurement are considered alongside sales to foreign governments and the opportunities that may present for bribery and corruption.

The Military-Industrial-Political-Complex (MIPC) is unpacked and the behaviour of its major agents – national defence agencies, the armed forces, producer groups, political agents (voters, political parties and budget-maximising bureaucracies) – is scrutinised, both in times of conflict (expansion) and peace (contraction). The book concludes by considering future trends, such as whether arms industries are better under state or private ownership, and how they can meet the challenge of new threats in different forms. The discussion throughout is anchored to case studies from all parts of the world, including Brazil, Korea, Japan, Russia as well as UK, US and Europe.

As an authoritative non-technical introduction to the economics of arms industries, it is suitable for students of business studies, politics, international relations, political economy, strategic and defence studies as well as for courses on microeconomics and industrial economics. As a masterly summation from one of the world’s leading defence economists, it will also be required reading for staff in defence ministries, procurement agencies, the armed forces and strategic studies think-tanks throughout the world.

Vera Zamagni charts the remarkable story of European economic growth from the birth of industrialization through to the present day. Setting European events within the wider context of world economic progress and alongside developments in Asia, Eastern Europe and the United States, she provides an up-to-date and authoritative survey suitable for course use.

The book begins with an outline of the economic landscape of the late Middle Ages before exploring the process of European industrialization, including how the British model was replicated across Europe, and why Britain was unable to maintain its position relative to other economies, in particular the United States. The advent of global finance is examined and the economic impact of world war and revolution is assessed. European reconstruction and integration is analysed alongside the decline of Russia and the growth of the Asian economies. The book ends with an assessment of the impact of the global crash of 2008 and the subsequent crisis of the Eurozone. Throughout her analysis, Zamagni shows how the social and economic institutions and values of European civilization catalyzed economic progress. That these same structures are now threatened makes this history particularly timely.

Global financial capitalism has eroded the moral economy on which all economic exchanges ultimately depend. The principles of reciprocity, responsibility and redistribution, which for centuries defined the market place, have been increasingly pushed aside by a growth model that places the pursuit of profit above all else.

Luigino Bruni and Stefano Zamagni draw on a rich Italian tradition of civic humanism to advocate a more well-mannered type of economic market – a civil economy – one that places well-being, virtue and the common good alongside more familiar economic goals. They provide a succinct introduction to the civil economy approach and outline the thought and ideas of some of its pioneers and main representatives. The many different fields of application of the civil economy, from the determination of gross domestic product to the management of common goods, from welfare to the organization of production and consumption, are considered.

Unlike many post-growth or degrowth movements, rather than seek to replace the market, civil economy seeks to find solutions to social problems within the market, while maximizing human values and minimizing government intervention. It is a distinct and valuable approach, and one that offers individuals, corporations and governments a framework for a humane and socially accountable, yet productive and competitive, system of markets.

The “informal” economy – economic activity and income outside government regulation, taxation and observation – is, by its very nature, difficult to quantify. Recent estimates suggest it accounts, in OECD countries, for around 13% of national income (in the UK, the equivalent of £150 billion) and in developing nations it can make up as much as three-quarters of all non-agricultural employment. Whatever the exact figures, it is clear that the informal economy plays a significant role in national incomes (eventhough excluded from calculations of GDP or GNP) and affects a large share of the global workforce.

Colin C. Williams provides an authoritative introduction to the topic, explaining what the informal economy is (and what it isn’t) and how it can best be measured. Taking a global perspective, he examines its characteristics in developed, developing and transitional economies, and looks at its role as a driver of economic growth. The theoretical underpinnings are explored, from conceptual origins in the development models of the 1950s, through to present-day discussions, which question whether a formalised economy is always the ideal.

The book considers the economic motivations of the informal economy workforce, which may include tax evasion, circumventing regulations and maintaining state benefits, and assesses the different policy options available to governments to combat them, whether a punitive policy of deterrence, or one of accommodation that recognises the value of the sector in generating income and in meeting the needs of poor consumers.

The book provides a masterly summation of the published research on the informal economy and an expert assessment of the key areas for research going forward. It will be welcomed by students taking courses in development economics, economic growth, labour economics, welfare economics and public policy.

Over the past decade central banks have taken on new and expanded roles in an attempt to manage the global financial crisis. The European Central Bank (ECB) has been no exception. If anything, because of the incomplete architecture of the euro, the ECB has faced more serious challenges than either the Bank of England or the Federal Reserve. With the onset of the euro crisis, the ECB was forced to take on powers that went well beyond the conventions of standard monetary policy to prevent European Monetary Union from unravelling.

Panicos Demetriades, former Governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus during the country's bailout in 2013, examines the role of the ECB and its adoption of these new powers, which have led to legal and political challenges, high level resignations and the controversial removal of central bankers from their posts without due process. Demetriades argues that at a time when stability and action are needed to secure the future of the euro, the very foundations of the Euro-system are being eroded, namely its ability to act independently. The book provides a lively and insightful account of the processes that can make or break the euro.

Over the past decade central banks have taken on new and expanded roles in an attempt to manage the global financial crisis. The European Central Bank (ECB) has been no exception. If anything, because of the incomplete architecture of the euro, the ECB has faced more serious challenges than either the Bank of England or the Federal Reserve. With the onset of the euro crisis, the ECB was forced to take on powers that went well beyond the conventions of standard monetary policy to prevent European Monetary Union from unravelling.

Panicos Demetriades, former Governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus during the country's bailout in 2013, examines the role of the ECB and its adoption of these new powers, which have led to legal and political challenges, high level resignations and the controversial removal of central bankers from their posts without due process. Demetriades argues that at a time when stability and action are needed to secure the future of the euro, the very foundations of the Euro-system are being eroded, namely its ability to act independently. The book provides a lively and insightful account of the processes that can make or break the euro.

Although still the world’s third largest economy, Japan continues to feel the effects of the collapse of a massive asset price bubble in the early 1990s. In recent years further setbacks, including both the Asian and global financial crises, and the 2011 Fukushima earthquake, have only added to the economy’s difficulties and made its prospects under Abenomics at best mixed.

Hiroaki Richard Watanabe examines the ups and downs of Japan’s postwar economic history to offer an up-to-date and authoritative guide to the workings of Japan’s economy. The book highlights the country’s distinct business networks and its unique state–market relationship. It explores the characteristic institutional complementarity that exists among different sectors and business practices and gives particular attention to human factors, such as labour market dualism, gender discrimination and migration. Although often associated in western minds with futuristic automated efficiency, Japan’s economy, Watanabe shows, retains many inefficient and peculiar business practices that do not comply with global standards.

The book provides readers with a concise survey of Japan’s recent economic history, the economy’s characteristic features and the challenges it faces.

The US subprime mortgage crisis, by nearly causing the collapse of the global financial system during the 2007–08 financial crisis, clearly revealed that household debt management is critical to the stability of the international economy. The configuration of mortgage finance systems of European economies, from the UK to Sweden to Spain, have profound effects on national macroeconomic and political outcomes.

In this book, Gregory Fuller reveals how national housing systems diverge in terms of their commodification and financialization: mortgages are far more common in some systems than others; some encourage families to treat housing as a tradeable asset while others do not; and certain states provide extensive social housing programmes while others offer virtually none. These differences are shown to have an impact on households’ economic precarity, macroeconomic volatility, and ultimately on their political preferences. Drawing on these comparisons, Fuller offers a number of policy suggestions intended to weaken the links between housing, economic instability, and inequality.

Drawing on comparative detail from Europe, North America, and the rest of the world, Driving Change provides a nuanced overview of the UK’s modern transport system and the role of business models and policy choices in its evolution. The common features of mobility and travel in developed economies are highlighted in order to provide a balanced appraisal of possible future developments.

The book offers a detailed consideration of the potential of new technologies – electric propulsion, digital platforms and autonomous vehicles – to offer solutions to the intractable challenges that accompany high levels of car ownership, as well as their likely impact on business and transport policy.

Driving Change is a rich analysis of the modern state of transportation and will be welcomed by students of transport studies and policy professionals tasked with developing infrastructure and the growth of the transportation industry.

The availability of low-cost energy from fossil fuels – in particular oil – has been the driving force behind postwar global economic growth, such that the petroleum industry has some of the world’s largest companies. This book examines the economics of the oil and gas industry, from exploration, development and production, to transportation, refining and marketing. At each stage of the value chain, the key economic costs and considerations are presented in order to provide the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the workings of the industry.

The book examines some of the unique economic challenges the industry faces, including negotiating international contracts with host countries (to gain access to hydrocarbons), managing the risks of recovery, implementing cross-border pipelines, dealing with huge variations in the taxation of refined products, and reacting to the effect of price control and subsidization in the OPEC nations which can create massive volatility in pricing. The search for low-carbon fuels, the impact of shale gas, the prospect of finite reserves, and the global political realities of the competing demands of oil-importing and oil-exporting countries are shown to make the sector high risk, but the economic rewards can be huge.

Productivity looms large in public policy discussions yet many find themselves hard-pressed to explain exactly what the term means. Even within economics, its nature and significance is contested and the focus of complex debate. Michael Haynes cuts through the jargon and political sloganeering to provide a detailed examination of the concept, how it is used and why it is held by economists to be so important in evaluating the health of economies.

The book explores why productivity grows or fails to grow in certain contexts, in particular how real world variables can interact with measurements of efficiency and output. The difficulties of measuring its scope are examined alongside the larger question of whether growth in productivity is sustainable, both at the level of national economies and globally. Whether productivity remains the motor of economic growth that it once was and continues to be the most appropriate economic indicator for modern economies is shown to be a key consideration.

For anyone searching for a clear, engaging and level-headed guide to one of the most important metrics for understanding economic growth, this book will be warmly welcomed.

Before the Great Financial Crisis of 2008–09, significant reductions in official interest rates typically proved sufficient to generate sustainable economic recoveries from downturns. However, with economies and financial markets in freefall during the crisis despite a cut in interest rates to effectively zero, policymakers in some advanced economies launched a major new tool called quantitative easing (QE). This involved central banks purchasing huge amounts of financial assets.

This book offers a thorough and perspicacious analysis of QE, which has become a recovery method of last resort. Whilst it was successful in averting another Great Depression and stimulating growth, it remains controversial and continues to promote widespread debate in economics, financial, and political-economy circles. This book is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand central banking in the national economy.

Since the global financial crisis, the world has seen a stark rise in financial investment in farming and agricultural production. Indeed, finance has been identified as one of the main causes of the so-called “global land rush”. In a world with a growing population that needs to be fed, the financial returns from agriculture are sold as safe bets. The debate that this has prompted has been frequently alarmist, with financiers blamed for rising land prices, corporate enclosures, the dispossession of smallholder farmers and the expansion of large-scale industrial agriculture.

Stefan Ouma speaks to these concerns via an ethnographic journey through the agrifocused asset management industry. His penetrating analysis of case studies taken from New Zealand and Tanzania allows him to put global finance “in place”, bringing into view the flesh-and-blood institutions, globespanning social relations, everyday practices and place-based value struggles that are often absent in broad-brushed narratives on the “financialization of agriculture”. The book closes with a key question for the Anthropocene: which form of finance forwhich kind of food future?

The European Central Bank administers monetary policy for the eurozone and is tasked with maintaining price stability by keeping inflation below 2 per cent. This brief mandate belies the complexity of managing the monetary policy for the 19 member states of the euro, not to mention the political implications thereof.

This book sets out the history, development and day-to-day workings of this key institutional pillar of the European Union. It assesses its work, independence, the policies and instruments at its disposal and the evolution of its role during, and after, the eurozone crisis of 2010. Incomplete monetary union, Germany's hegemonic ambitions and different economic policies from individual member countries are shown to pose formidable challenges to the ECB's macroeconomic management.

Credit rating agencies (CRAs) assess the creditworthiness of debt issuers on financial markets. They are private companies and the ratings they issue are judgements about the prospect of repayment of debt by an issuer in time and in full. A rating is not an investment recommendation, but it is an opinion about the creditworthiness of a financial product or an issuing bank, government, supra- or sub-national institution.

In recent years CRAs have gained an authority in bond markets that far surpasses their original design. The financial crisis of 2008 thrust the CRAs into the spotlight as their highly rated financial products turned out to be toxic assets. CRAs were blamed not only for their excessively optimistic ratings, but also for their complicity in creating them.

This short book introduces and explores the complex world of the credit rating industry: how it works, how it has evolved, the role it played in the financial crisis, and how it is regulated. Giulia Mennillo shows, as constitutive actors of global financial capitalism, CRAs have a social and political relevance that reaches well beyond finance into areas of transport, infrastructure, education and health and their impact is emblematic of the increasing financialization of our world.

China’s transformation over the past four decades has been unprecedented. The vision of its leaders for the next three decades is unprecedented too, as China seeks to fashion an advanced economy without significant political and social liberalization.

Stephen Morgan provides a wide-ranging examination of China’s remarkable economic history from the time of the great divergence to the present day. Alongside the familiar story of GDP growth, he considers a comprehensive range of issues, including business management, energy use, foreign direct investment, government, innovation and consumerism as well as social and demographic factors such as social networks, health, education and migration and their interlinked challenges for the Chinese state. The specifics of development are examined – capitalism from above and below and its regional variances – as well as notable consequences, including growing inequality and severe pollution. The book also assesses the challenges to China’s continued growth, including its ageing and shrinking workforce (and rising dependency ratio), the constraints on innovation and raising productivity, as well as its ambitious international plans.

The book provides an accessible and authoritative survey of China’s recent economic history and the workings of its unique political economy suitable for courses in Asian business and economy, Chinese history and East Asian studies.

Germany’s public savings banks – Sparkassen – are a remarkable and puzzling phenomena. No other advanced industrial country relies as heavily on such small, public financial institutions to fuel its economy and how is it that such small institutions can drive one of the biggest and most successful economies in the world?

In theory, their diminutive size should hinder their ability to function in an environment where they compete with the capital and muscle of major international banks. Yet at the height of the financial crisis, when other banks drastically reduced lending, new loans made by Sparkassen increased as they continued to provide liquidity and lend to start-up firms. How have they managed to survive the economic turmoil and global pressures of the last few decades? What has enabled them to stay at the heart of the German economy? In a period of neoliberal “too-big-to-fail” thinking, how have these relics of an ordoliberal past managed to flourish?

Mark Cassell answers these and many other questions in his exploration of the unique entity that is Germany’s public savings bank system and the lessons it offers to banking systems worldwide.

The data that professional sport generates, which is almost unparalleled in any other industry, provides a wealth of information for the economist to analyse. Sport offers economists the opportunity to study the behaviour, choices and outcomes of the decisions of players, referees, regulators and governments.

Advances in Sports Economics is a collection of newly commissioned essays that examine a wide range of different sports, including baseball, basketball, cricket, football, horse racing, rugby, tennis and Gaelic games. The contributors consider economic issues such as incentives, rule changes, labour markets, competition structure, gambling, gender equality, match official behaviour, superstar players, funding and sports infrastructure as well as interogating the methods and theories used in sports economics.

The essays showcase how the application of economic analysis can provide us with a better understanding of the mechanics of professional sport.

The fishing industry’s critical dependence on the natural environment makes it very different from other economic sectors. How it can optimally exploit a common resource while ensuring its sustainability raises many economic challenges. This book, suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate courses on fisheries economics and management, provides an introduction to the economics of the fishing industry and the role of fisheries in the world economy.

The book’s primary focus is on capture fisheries, although the discussion brings in wider aquaculture for comparative analysis. The key economic concepts that drive the industry, most notably sustainable yield, are explained in detail, before examining how the industry puts them into practice in a complex regulatory environment. The variability of fish stocks is considered and case studies of some spectacular stock crashes are discussed. The law of the sea is explained and how the movement of fish stocks across ocean boundaries has created regulatory bodies to manage international fisheries. At the heart of this management lies the quota system and the book outlines how it works and how, controversially, such quotas have become transferable.

The book offers readers a comprehensive and rigorous guide to the economic considerations motivating the industry and highlights the environmental challenges facing the sector as global consumption of fish continues to rise.

The airline industry is fundamental to the workings of the global economy. Yet, ironically for an industry of such sheer scale and economic muscle, profit margins are razor thin and many airlines struggle to break even. The precarious economics of the sector were fully revealed when Covid-19 grounded flights across the world prompting many national carriers to seek government bailouts, while smaller airlines collapsed.

In this updated and expanded new edition Volodymyr Bilotkach explains the economic realities of the airline industry and the challenges that the sector now faces after the seismic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The impact of such a large-scale external shock on the industry is considered across each of its sectors and for each of its primary economic determinants. The book also includes new material on changes to cost structures, the pricing of add-on services, cargo, airport slot allocation and the impact of climate change.

The book remains a comprehensive introduction to the economics of airlines, how carriers compete, how they develop their business, and how demand and cost structure, coupled with the complex regulatory regime, produces the industry we see today.

The airline industry is fundamental to the workings of the global economy. Yet, ironically for an industry of such sheer scale and economic muscle, profit margins are razor thin and many airlines struggle to break even. The precarious economics of the sector were fully revealed when Covid-19 grounded flights across the world prompting many national carriers to seek government bailouts, while smaller airlines collapsed.

In this updated and expanded new edition Volodymyr Bilotkach explains the economic realities of the airline industry and the challenges that the sector now faces after the seismic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The impact of such a large-scale external shock on the industry is considered across each of its sectors and for each of its primary economic determinants. The book also includes new material on changes to cost structures, the pricing of add-on services, cargo, airport slot allocation and the impact of climate change.

The book remains a comprehensive introduction to the economics of airlines, how carriers compete, how they develop their business, and how demand and cost structure, coupled with the complex regulatory regime, produces the industry we see today.

The music industry is one of the most dynamic and fascinating business sectors. Its business model has had to evolve and adapt to continually changing technologies that impact at every level from distribution to artist management. Its latest challenge has been the closure of live music venues during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The second edition of this much used introduction to the economic workings of the music business has been updated to include analysis of the impact of the pandemic as well as new trends in the industry, such as the increasing dominance of tech companies and big data and the growing importance of collective management organizations as market players, which has impacted on new business contracts. At a time when live performance outstrips music sales as the primary source of income for today’s musicians, this new edition also examines how different stakeholder positions have shifted.

The book remains a rigorous presentation of the industry’s business model, the core sectors of publishing, recording and live music, and the complex myriad of licensing and copyright arrangements that underpin the industry. The revenue streams of recording companies are analysed alongside the income stream of artists to show how changing formats and distribution platforms impact both industry profit margins and artists’ earnings.

Inflation, hyperinflation and deflation have all had profound effects on societies, especially during periods of war and crisis. Today’s approach to managing inflation has been shaped by these episodes and informed by debates between different schools of economic thought from Fisher and Hayek to Keynes and the monetarists. This accessible and authoritative overview explores the role of inflation in the modern economy, from its place in monetary policy and in money supply to its effects on everyday business.


In a compelling analysis, the book shows that since the financial crisis in 2008–09, inflation rates have remained persistently higher than interest rates worldwide, which is the inverse of our basic understanding of how inflation normally affects markets. The result of this inversion has been that the effective real return on investment has become negative, and consequently, the investment rate has dropped across western economies. At a time when inflation once again challenges the world’s leading economies, the book offers valuable insight into the monetary policy of central banks.

Although the asset management industry has come under increasing scrutiny since the financial crisis it still remains poorly understood and investment scandals continue to headline in the financial press. Whereas most literature on the industry focuses on the technical end – how managers invest and what tips others can glean – this book explores the way these businesses operate as businesses and how they make their money.



The book explains how the industry is organized, how firms generate revenues through various types of fund, fees and charges and what cost pressures they face. It investigates the nature of their client relationships, the role played by star investors and the requirement for firms to integrate non-financial considerations into their investment process. The inherent tensions and potential conflicts of interest within asset managers that seek to keep both clients and shareholders happy is also examined. The book concludes by considering how the industry is evolving, the role of regulation and where it is struggling to change.



Suitable for students of business and finance, those working in allied areas of the finance sector, and for anyone with a general interest in how financial institutions and markets operate, the book offers readers a balanced and incisive guide to the economics of an industry that globally controls more than $100 trillion of financial assets and a critical appraisal of the sector’s future.

The advent of new digital currencies has challenged our notions about money, its function and purpose, and our faith in the financial and banking structures that underpin its legitimacy. Oonagh McDonald charts the spectacular rise of cryptocurrencies over the past decade and considers the opportunities and threats that cryptocurrencies pose to existing fiat currencies. This revised edition includes a new chapter dealing with the high-profile bankruptcies of the recent “crypto winter”.


The book considers how regulatory bodies have been slow to respond to a technology that is evading existing regulatory frameworks. Urgent and more robust protection is needed from fraudulent initial coin offerings, scams and hacks. Throughout her analysis, McDonald shows that trust is fundamental to the operation of finance and that this will ultimately protect commercial bank money from the threat of new digital currencies. The book offers readers an insightful appraisal of the future of money and the challenges facing regulatory bodies.

There has been a recent resurgence in interest in the theorization of labour regimes in various disciplines. This has taken the form of a concern to understand the role that labour regimes play in the structuring, organization and dynamics of global systems of production and reproduction. The concept has a long heritage that can be traced back to the 1970s and the contributions to this book seek to develop further this emerging field.

The book traces the intellectual development of labour regime concepts across various disciplines, notably political economy, development studies, sociology and geography. Building on these foundations it considers conceptual debates around labour regimes and global production relating to issues of scale, informality, gender, race, social reproduction, ecology and migration, and offers new insights into the work conditions of global production chains from Amazon's warehouses in the United States, to industrial production networks in the Global South, and to the dormitory towns of migrant workers in Czechia. It also explores recent mobilizations of labour regime analysis in relation to methods, theory and research practice.

We are the only species that uses fire. It has determined how we have made our home on this planet and it has propelled us to the role of the dominant species in the biosphere. But at the heart of contemporary climate change is the process of combustion. Simon Dalby explores what a life without burning things might look like, and how we might get there.


Fires make the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that is heating the planet, melting the ice sheets, changing weather patterns and making wildfires worse. Our civilization is burning things, especially fossil fuels, at prodigious rates. So much so that we are now heading towards a future “Hothouse Earth” with a climate that is very different from what humans have known so far.


By focusing on fire and our partial control over one key physical force in the earth system, that of combustion, Simon Dalby is able to ask important and interesting questions about us as humans, including different ways of thinking about how we live, and how we might do so differently in the future. Simply put, there is now far too much “firepower” loose in the world and we need to think much harder about how to live together in ways that don’t require burning stuff to do so.

Climate change is increasingly contested on financial terms. Different actors are advancing competing climate visions and interests by adopting financial positions. International institutions urge action by identifying financing gaps needed to meet climate targets. The finance sector claims it holds the key to unlocking money needed for climate investment. Activists expose greenwashing while using financial tactics to undermine fossil fuels. Vulnerable countries demand wealthy governments repay historical climate debts.


This book offers an accessible and critical guide to the political economy and economic geography of climate finance. It identifies six competing "positions" of climate finance to make sense of the array of financial instruments, institutions and ideas that are remaking the relationship between capitalism and climate change. Using a wide range of case studies, from green bonds, to divestment, carbon offsetting, climate tech, central banks, and international climate funds, the authors show how climate finance is shaping our collective climate futures.

Economic policymakers use various macroeconomic models, but how reliable are they in real-world conditions? Starting from the premise that all models are wrong, but some are useful, Matteo Iannizzotto introduces and explains the workings of the key economic models available for policymaking. He shows that the inconsistencies and contradictions evident in the real world require the economist to make choices about which models to adopt in certain circumstances and when not to rigidly adhere to a single approach.


The book uses a clear and critical step by step analysis to consider the strengths and weaknesses of each model, in a way that enables students to develop their own critical engagement with macroeconomic policymaking. In so doing, the book provides an understanding of the world economy’s fluctuations since the global financial crisis that embraces the uncomfortable fact that inconsistency and the need for a multiplicity of models is central to macroeconomic policy choices.


For the many students bewildered by the disconnect between the models in their textbooks and the policy choices so hotly debated in the press, the book will be essential reading.