1. Why are some countries poor (less developed) and others rich (developed)? Discuss the main features of the liberal, realist/neo-mercantilist, Marxist, and structuralist/dependency perspectives on economic development. How well do these perspectives explain the economic development of the newly industrializing countries (NICs) and China? Justify your answer.

2. Three exchange rate regimes have characterized international monetary relations since 1945: fixed, floating, and managed. What is meant by these terms? What kind of a system was Bretton Woods? The so-called Triffin dilemma argues that the Bretton Woods system was inherently defective, and that therefore the collapse of the system was to be expected. Explain what is meant by the Triffin dilemma. Could the life of the Bretton Woods system have been prolonged? If yes, why and how? If no, why not?

3. As was the case with trade policy, we can try to explain exchange-rate policy by relying either on a society-centered or a state-centered approach. Discuss the underlying logic of one society centered approach and one state-centered approach and explain how they account for exchange rate policy. Name one important weakness of each of these two approaches (that is, what do they not explain)?

4. Explain what is meant by the Unholy Trinity. Let's assume that we live in a world in which capital cannot move freely across international borders, that is, we have instituted capital controls (which was the case during the Bretton Woods era). How does the Unholy Trinity help us explain why the United States could pursue a contractionary monetary policy (a reduction in the money supply) and France an expansionary monetary policy (an increase in the money supply) during the Bretton Woods era? Now let's assume instead that capital can move freely across international borders. What was likely to happen to the value of the dollar as a result of monetary expansion (quantitative easing) in response to the 2008-09 economic crisis in the United States? Justify your answers.

5. In 1963, South Korea abandoned its former emphasis on import-substitution industrialization (ISI) in favor of export-oriented industrialization (EOI). Discuss three explanations for this shift in economic strategy. Which is more convincing? Justify your answer.

6. Discuss the causes and consequences of the Latin American debt crisis of the 1980s and the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98. How were these crises different? Whereas countries such as South Korea, Thailand, and Indonesia adopted the IMF's policy advice in return for an infusion of funds during the Asian crisis, Malaysia rejected the IMF's suggested economic reforms. How was this possible and why did Malaysia reject the suggested reforms?