The Decline of Sterling: Managing the Retreat of an International Currency 1945-1992

Schenk, C.R. (2010) The Decline of Sterling: Managing the Retreat of an International Currency 1945-1992. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge,. ISBN 9780521876971

Abstract

The demise of sterling as an international currency was widely predicted after 1945, but the process took thirty years to complete. Why was this demise so prolonged? Traditional explanations emphasize British efforts to prolong sterling’s role because it increased the capacity to borrow, enhanced prestige, or supported London as a centre for international finance. This book challenges this view by arguing that sterling’s international role was prolonged by the weakness of the international monetary system and by collective global interest in its continuation. Using the archives of Britain’s partners in Europe, the USA and the Commonwealth, Catherine Schenk shows how the UK was able to convince other governments that sterling’s international role was critical for the stability of the international economy and thereby attract considerable support to manage its retreat. This revised view has important implications for current debates over the future of the U.S. dollar as an international currency.

• Item Type: Books
• Status: Published
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Schenk, Professor Catherine
• Authors: Schenk, C.R.
• Subjects: H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions; H Social Sciences > HB Economic Theory
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Economic and Social History
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• ISBN: 9780521876971

Related URLs

• University of Glasgow Library Catalogue

Project Code	Award No	Project Name	Principal Investigator	Funder's Name	Funder Ref	Lead Dept
41341	1	The experience of exchange rate regime change among developing countries 1968-78	Catherine Schenk	Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC)	ES/D001064/1	Economic and Social History