Skip to content
Licensed Unlicensed Requires Authentication Published by De Gruyter June 23, 2016

The U.S. Monetary Policies Against the Great Recession of 2008: A Critique from the Deflationist Viewpoint of the Austrian School

  • Renaud Fillieule EMAIL logo

Abstract

Monetary and credit expansions have been the main tools used by the U.S. government and central bank to try and recover economically from the Great Recession of 2008. This paper expounds a radical criticism of these Keynesian policies, criticism developed by some contemporary economists of the Austrian School: the appropriate and fair remedy for this kind of crisis is not reflation but deflation.

JEL: B53; E32; E52

References

Bagus, P. 2003. “Deflation: When Austrians Become Interventionists.” The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 6 (4):19–35.10.1007/s12113-003-1002-6Search in Google Scholar

Bagus, P. 2006. “Five Common Errors About Deflation.” Procesos De Mercado: Revista Europea De Economía Política 3 (1):105–23.10.52195/pm.v3i1.347Search in Google Scholar

Bernanke, B. S. 2002. “Deflation: Making Sure ‘It’ Doesn’t Happen Here.” Paper presented at the National Economists Club, Washington.Search in Google Scholar

Fillieule, R. 2013. “The Explanation of the Subprime Crisis According To the Austrian School: A Defense and Illustration.” Journal Des Économistes Et Des Études Humaines. DOI 10.1515/jeeh-2012-0006, 36 p.10.1515/jeeh-2012-0006Search in Google Scholar

Fisher, I. 1933. “The Debt-Deflation Theory of Great Depressions.” Econometrica 1 (4):337–57.10.2307/1907327Search in Google Scholar

Garrison, R. W. 2001. Time and Money. The Macroeconomics of Capital Structure. London: Routledge.10.4324/9780203208083Search in Google Scholar

Gertchev, N. 2003. “Review of the Case for Gold Edited by William Rees-Mogg.” The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 6 (4):117–26.10.1007/s12113-003-1009-zSearch in Google Scholar

Hayek, F. A. 1931. Prices and Production. London: Routledge.Search in Google Scholar

Hayek, F. A. 1933. Monetary Theory and the Trade Cycle. London: Jonathan Cape.Search in Google Scholar

Hayek, F. A. 1975. A Discussion with Friedrich A. Von Hayek. Washington, DC: American Enterprise Institute.Search in Google Scholar

Huerta de Soto, J. 2006. Money, Bank Credit, and Economic Cycles, 2nd ed. Auburn: Ludwig von Mises Institute.Search in Google Scholar

Hülsmann, G. 2002 [2008]. Deflation and Liberty. Auburn: Ludwig von Mises Institute.Search in Google Scholar

Hülsmann, G. 2003. “Optimal Monetary Policy.” The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 6 (4):37–60.10.1007/s12113-003-1003-5Search in Google Scholar

Hülsmann, G. 2011. “The Economics of Deflation.” Paper presented at the 2011 Mises University, Auburn, Alabama.Search in Google Scholar

Ivry, B., B. Keoun, and P. Kuntz. 2011. “Secret Fed Loans Gave Banks $13 Billion Undisclosed to Congress.” Bloomberg, November 28.Search in Google Scholar

Mises, L. von. 1949 [1998]. Human Action. A Treatise on Economics. Auburn: Ludwig von Mises Institute.Search in Google Scholar

Rothbard, M. N. 1963. America’s Great Depression. Princeton, NJ: D. Van Nostrand.Search in Google Scholar

Salerno, J. T. 2003. “An Austrian Taxonomy of Deflation–with Application to the U.S.” The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 6 (4):81–109.10.1007/s12113-003-1007-1Search in Google Scholar

Selgin, G. 1997. Less Than Zero: The Case for a Falling Price Level in a Growing Economy. London: Institute of Economic Affairs.10.1111/j.1468-0270.1997.tb01245.xSearch in Google Scholar

Selgin, G., W. D. Lastrapes, and L. H. White. 2012. “Has the Fed Been a Failure?” Journal of Macroeconomics 34 (3):569–96.10.1016/j.jmacro.2012.02.003Search in Google Scholar

Sumner, S. 2012. “The Case for Nominal GDP Targeting.” Mercatus Center at George Mason University, 24 p.10.2139/ssrn.3255027Search in Google Scholar

Thornton, M. 2003. “Apoplithorismosphobia.” The Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 6 (4):5–18.10.1007/s12113-003-1001-7Search in Google Scholar

White, L. H. 2008. “Did Hayek and Robbins Deepen the Great Depression?” Journal of Money, Credit and Banking 40 (4):751–68.10.1111/j.1538-4616.2008.00134.xSearch in Google Scholar

Published Online: 2016-6-23
Published in Print: 2016-7-1

©2016 by De Gruyter

Downloaded on 3.6.2024 from https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/jeeh-2016-0007/html
Scroll to top button