The Foundations of Worldwide Economic Integration : Power, Institutions, and Global Markets, 1850–1930

The essays in this volume discuss the worldwide economic integration between 1850 and 1930, challenging the popular description of the period after 1918 as one of mere deglobalisation. The authors posit that markets were not only places of material exchange, but also socially structured entities, shaped by the agency of individual actors and by complex structures of political and economic power. Economic transactions were supported by an array of different institutions, ranging from formalized regulations to informal relations of personal trust. They argue that these networks were strong enough to prosper even through and after World War I, in a political climate often hostile to foreign trade. The Foundations of Worldwide Economic Integration shows that institutionalism altered its shape in the face of circumstances that increasingly challenged international trade. By presenting case studies from various countries, this book offers a fresh perspective on crucial periods of economic globalisation. Contents Tables and Figures Tables Figures Contributors Foreword 1 Introduction The Importance of Institutions for Worldwide Economic Interaction Power and Economic Exchange Global Markets as Social Entities Periodisation Conclusion Part I Legal Institutions And Private Actors 2 Legal Institutions and the World Economy, 1900-1930 National Legal Systems International Legal Unification: The Case of the Law of Bills of Exchange Private Legal Orders: Standard Contracts, Business Associations and Commercial Arbitration Conclusions 3 Against Globalisation The Failure to Coordinate: Conventions, Empires and Federations International Mobilisation The Hague Conferences The Private Sector An Emerging Epistemic Community An Inconclusive Answer to the Puzzle: Special Interests Centrality of the Judicial Argument Alternate Strategies for Global Governance What the Lawyers Argued Sovereignty and the Regulation of Private Contracts Conclusions 4 Credit Information, Institutions, and International Trade Credit Reporting: For-Profit Firms vs. Mutual Protection Societies British Institutions American Institutions German Institutions Conclusions and Directions for Further Research Convergence The Quest for Legitimacy Social and Political Issues: Privacy Part II Colonial markets and non-Western actors 5 The London Stock Exchange and the Colonial Market The Stock Exchange, Internationalisation and Power Institutions Market Institutions and Market, 1900-1930 Conclusion 6 The London Gold Market, 1900-1931 The Prewar Gold Market The First World War and the Gold Market A Free Gold Market in London (1919-1925) The Restored Gold Standard (1925-1931) Conclusion 7 The Boundaries of Western Power Attempts to Control Cotton Quality on the Subcontinent Through Colonial Law The Realignment of the Indian Cotton Trade after the 1860s The Failure of Colonial Hopes The End of European Dominance after the Turn of the Century Conclusion 8 The Colonised as Global Traders The Global Economic Agency of Colonial Subjects: The Case of Indian Traders The Resilience of Indian Networks in the High Imperial Era, 1870-1914 The Institutional Framework for the International Operations of Indian Traders The Impact of the First World War on Indian Trading Networks Conclusion 9 The International Patent System and the Global Flow of Technologies The Paris Convention Technology Transfer and Patent Protection in Japan Technologies Without Capital (1868-1895) FDI and Integration into the World Economy (1895-1930) The Technologies of the Second Industrial Revolution: The Case of Electrical Equipment The Consumer Goods Industry: Watch and Clock Making as an Example Conclusion Part III The First World War and the consequences for economic globalisation 10 Transnational Cooperation in Wartime The Propertisation and Internationalisation of Culture in the Nineteenth Century The European Book Trade and the First World War The Berne Union in Legal Theory and Legal Practice, 1914-1918 The International Office in Berne: Institutional Permanence and Informal Networks The Paris Peace Treaties and the Return to Prewar Copyright Law Conclusions 11 The Resilience of Globalisation during the First World War Argentinas Grain Trade Before the War The British War on Bunge & Born Conclusion: The British War on Bunge & Born 12 Global Economic Governance and the Private Sector The EFO Within the League of Nations and its Early Mode of Governance Global Governance through Nonstate Actors, 1925-1929 International Cartel Debate and Diversity: From Deadlock to Stalemate, 1927-1929 Conclusion Index The Essays In This Volume Discuss The Worldwide Economic Integration Between 1850 And 1930, Challenging The Popular Description Of The Period After 1918 As One Of Mere Deglobalisation-- Power, Institutions, And Global Markets -- Actors, Mechanisms And Foundations Of World-wide Economic Integration, 1850--1930 Christof Dejung And Niels P. Petersson The Rapid Expansion Of World Trade Between 1850 And 1914, Its Difficult Reconstruction During The 1920s, And Its Subsequent Decline During The Great Depression Are Key Themes In The Current Historiography Of Economic Globalisation. But Such Scholarship Has Broadly Focused On The Changing Volume Of Foreign Trade Between Nation States, On Macro-economic Problems Such As National Tariff Policies, And On The History Of The Advancement Of Transport And Communication Technologies. There Have Been Very Few Discussion Of Global Trade Development Between The 1850s And The 1930s From The Perspective Of Economic Actors Below The Nation-state Level, Which Is To Say Actors Conducting Trading Operations In Everyday Business Life. Likewise, Economic And Business Historians Have Broadly Neglected The Institutional Framework Both Shaping And Shaped By The Enterprises Involved In Such Everyday Trade. Through Such A Shift Of Focus, The Contributions In The Present Volume Strongly Suggest That In The Late Nineteenth And Early Twentieth Centuries, Global Economic Integration Was Far More Than The Result Of Supply And Demand And Ever More Efficient Means Of Transport And Communications-- Foreword / By Harold James -- 1. Introduction: Power, Institutions, And Global Markets: Actors, Mechanisms, And Foundations Of Worldwide Economic Integration, 1850-1930 / Christof Dejung And Niels P. Petersson -- Part I. Legal Institutions And Private Actors: 2. Legal Institutions And The World Economy, 1900-1930 / Niels P. Petersson; 3. Against Globalisation: Sovereignty, Courts, And The Failure To Coordinate International Bankruptcies 1870-1940 / Jérôme Sgard; 4. Credit Information, Institutions, And International Trade: The United Kingdom, United Sstates, And Germany, 1850-1930 / Rowena Olegario -- Part Ii. Colonial Markets And Non-western Actors: 5. The London Stock Exchange And The Colonial Market: The City, Internationisation, And Power / Bernard Attard; 6. The London Gold Market, 1900-1931 / Bernd-stefan Grewe; 7. The Boundaries Of Western Power: The Colonial Cotton Economy In India And The Problem Of Quality / Christof Dejung; 8. The Colonised As Global Traders: Indian Trading Networks In The World Economy, 1850-1939 / Claude Markovits; 9. The International Patent System And The Global Flow Of Technologies: The Case Of Japan, 1880-1930 / Pierre-yves Donzé -- Part Iii. The First World War And The Consequences For Economic Globalisation: 10. Transnational Cooperation In Wartime: The International Protection Of Intellectual Property Rights During The First World War/ Isabella Löhr; 11. The Resilience Of Globalisation During The First World War: The Case Of Bunge & Born In Argentina / Philip Dehne; 12. Global Economic Governance And The Private Sector: The League Of Nations' Experiment In The 1920s / Michele D'alessandro. Edited By Christof Dejung, University Of Konstanz, Niels P. Petersson, Sheffield Hallam University. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Machine generated contents note: Preface Harold James; Introduction: power, institutions, and global markets - actors, mechanisms, and foundations of worldwide economic integration, 1850-1930 Christof Dejung and Niels P. Petersson; Part I. Legal Institutions and Private Actors: 1. Legal institutions and the world economy, 1900-30; 2. Against globalisation: sovereignty, courts, and the failure to coordinate international bankruptcies (1870-1940) Jérôme Sgard; 3. Credit information, institutions, and international trade: the UK, US, and Germany, 1850-1930 Rowena Olegario; Part II. Colonial Markets and Non-Western Actors: 4. The London Stock Exchange and the colonial market: a study of internationisation and power Bernard Attard; 5. The London gold market, 1900-31 Bernd-Stefan Grewe; 6. The boundaries of Western power: the colonial cotton economy in India and the problem of quality Christof Dejung; 7. The colonised as global traders: Indian trading networks in the world economy, 1850-1939 Claude Markovits; 8. The international patent system and the global flow of technologies: the case of Japan, 1880-1930 Pierre-Yves Donze;; Part III. World War I and the Consequences for Economic Globalisation: 9. Transnational cooperation in wartime: the international protection of intellectual property rights during the First World War Isabella Löhr; 10. The resilience of globalisation during the First World War: the case of Bunge & Born in Argentina Philip Dehne; 11. Global economic governance and the private sector: the League of Nations' experiment in the 1920s Michele d'Alessandro. "Power, Institutions, and Global Markets -- Actors, Mechanisms and Foundations of World-Wide Economic Integration, 1850--1930 Christof Dejung and Niels P. Petersson The rapid expansion of world trade between 1850 and 1914, its difficult reconstruction during the 1920s, and its subsequent decline during the Great Depression are key themes in the current historiography of economic globalisation. But such scholarship has broadly focused on the changing volume of foreign trade between nation states, on macro-economic problems such as national tariff policies, and on the history of the advancement of transport and communication technologies. There have been very few discussion of global trade development between the 1850s and the 1930s from the perspective of economic actors below the nation-state level, which is to say actors conducting trading operations in everyday business life. Likewise, economic and business historians have broadly neglected the institutional framework both shaping and shaped by the enterprises involved in such everyday trade. Through such a shift of focus, the contributions in the present volume strongly suggest that in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, global economic integration was far more than the result of supply and demand and ever more efficient means of transport and communications"--Résumé de l'éditeur The essays in this volume discuss worldwide economic integration between 1850 and 1930, challenging the popular description of the period after 1918 as one of mere deglobalisation. The authors argue that markets were not only places of material exchange, but also socially structured entities, shaped by the agency of individual actors and by complex structures of political and economic power. Economic transactions were supported by an array of different institutions, ranging from formalised regulations to informal relations of personal trust. They argue that these networks were strong enough to prosper even during and after World War I, in a political climate often hostile to foreign trade. The Foundations of Worldwide Economic Integration shows that institutionalism altered its shape in the face of circumstances that increasingly challenged international trade. By presenting case studies from various countries, this book offers a fresh perspective on crucial periods of economic globalisation. The essays in this volume discuss worldwide economic integration between 1850 and 1930, challenging the popular description of the period after 1918 as one of deglobalisation. By showing that institutionalism altered its shape in circumstances that challenged international trade, and presenting case studies from various countries, this book offers a fresh perspective on economic globalisation. "The essays in this volume discuss the worldwide economic integration between 1850 and 1930, challenging the popular description of the period after 1918 as one of mere deglobalisation"--Résumé de l'éditeur