More than 250 economists have signed a letter urging the Obama administration to rethink capital-control restrictions. International relations professor Kevin Gallagher, one of the signers of the letter, writes in a Guardian commentary that “for better or worse, trade policy is back in style.”
“The economists should be listened to: US trade treaties should not be tools for US financial policies that are not only outdated, but actually helped cause the financial crisis in the first place. Allowing flexibility for the use of capital controls to prevent and mitigate crises now has broad support. Our trading partners have been requesting such flexibility for years, granting it would represent one small step toward a more stable financial system.”
Contact Kevin Gallagher, 617-353-9348, kpg@bu.edu
