The Decline of Latin American Economies: Growth, Institutions, and Crises.

• Position: Bureau Books

The Decline of Latin American Economies: Growth, Institutions, and Crises, edited by Sebastian Edwards, Gerardo Esquivel, and Graciela Marquez, is available from the University of Chicago Press this spring. This NBER Conference Report is priced at $85.00.

Latin America's economic performance is mediocre at best, despite abundant natural resources and flourishing neighbors to the north. The perplexing question of how some of the wealthiest nations in the world during the nineteenth century are now the most crisis-prone has long puzzled economists and historians. The Decline of Latin American Economies examines the reality behind the struggling economies of Argentina, Chile, and Mexico. A distinguished panel of experts argues that slow growth, rampant protectionism, and rising inflation plagued Latin America for years, where corrupt institutions and political unrest undermined the financial...