Golden Fetters: The Gold Standard And The Great... May 2026

: Eichengreen argues that the gold standard was not a stabilizer, but rather the "principal threat" to financial stability. It acted as a "fetter," preventing central banks from lowering interest rates or expanding the money supply to combat the Depression.

For a deeper dive into these concepts, you can explore these resources: The Gold Standard and the Great Depression, 1919-1939 Golden Fetters: The Gold Standard and the Great...

: The system transmitted economic shocks from the United States to the rest of the world. Because countries were committed to fixed exchange rates, a downturn in one major economy forced others to adopt contractionary policies to protect their gold reserves. : Eichengreen argues that the gold standard was