First published in 1981, this book explores alternatives to the usual interpretations of the Depression, which stress the disruption in Europe caused by the Versailles Settlement, and the downswing in the United States. Here, AJH Latham's classic work examines the economic experience of Asia and Africa from 1914 to 1939 and looks at the influence of the developed world upon these two continents, showing how events there affected the entire international economy. In particular the author suggests that the economic progress of the 1920s caused the depression by creating overproduction of foodstuffs and raw materials. The communications improvements of these years are examined in detail, and the complex problems of the monetary systems of the developing countries are outlined together with the flow of capital to these areas, and its reversal in the 1930s.The book concludes that the overproduction of rice coupled with overproduction of wheat, forced down prices, thus causing...
