Arbeitspapier
States as Financiers: International Lending in War and Peace
Kieler Arbeitspapiere, 2321
Autoren
Erscheinungsdatum
JEL Classification
E42
F33
F34
F35
F36
G01
G20
N1
N2
Schlagworte
Afrika
Geoökonomie
Politische Ökonomie
Krieg
Amerika
Asien
China
Geldpolitik
Internationale Finanzen
Globalisierung
Direktinvestitionen
Fiskalpolitik & Haushalt
Finanzmärkte
Europäische Union & Euro
Schwellen-& Entwicklungsländer
Wirtschafts- & Finanzkrisen
States are major international financiers, but their role is poorly understood. We study state-driven cross-border lending over two centuries using a new database covering 1.2 million official loans and grants by 134 governments and 70 multilateral institutions since 1790. We document a dual, state-contingent structure of international credit. In normal times, private creditors dominate cross-border lending. In adverse states of the world, such as wars and financial crises, official creditors step in, at times on a massive scale. These official flows are driven by great powers, are highly subsidized, and are largely absent from canonical models in international macroeconomics.
