Customer Reviews

Currency Wars: The Making of the Next Global Crisis (Portfolio)

5 star:		(70)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Jim Rickards, who is famous, among other things, for his ability to accurately predict the Fed's moves ahead of time. His most recent accurate call was the implementation of Operation Twist, i.e the selling of short-term government debt and the buying of long-term government debt in order to increase short-term interest rates and decrease long-term interest rates.

The main theme of the book is that the world is already heading toward a full-blown currency war which will bring even harsher economic turmoil to the world economy than the one we experienced in the last three years since the housing bubble burst in the U.S.

Rickards explores in depth, basing his arguments on past currency wars such as the one after WW1 between several European countries and the U.S., and why currency wars are a lose-lose situation. In short, Rickards's main argument is that countries around the world are devaluing their currencies in order to boost their exports (domestically produced goods and services will be cheaper for foreigners) thereby increasing their GDP. However, such actions will frequently be met by mutual currency devaluation by other countries or by some protectionist policy such as tariffs. Therefore, countries will gain a temporary advantage until other countries retaliate, the end result of which will be: inflation brought on from currency devaluation, protectionism and the halt of free trade, thus - wealth destruction. And in a worst case scenario, an outright military conflict.

As was mentioned above, I found Rickards's thesis to be well argued and backed with plenty of historical facts. To sum up, this book just has it all, great and engaging writing, fascinating economic history, and shrewd analysis of the current and coming global crisis.

No one is safe from Rickards' insightful analysis in this original and fast-paced history of world economic and monetary policy and the currency wars that have led to destructive outcomes more than once in the last hundred years. Despite the fact that repeated manipulation of currency by various countries throughout recent history in an attempt to dominate trade and spur domestic economic growth has failed miserably, the U.S. now faces a new currency war that might be, as Rickards says, "the currency war to end all currency wars." His disdain for the use of Quantitative Easing and the creation of a new world central bank is palpable and the urgency with which he makes his argument is cogent and frankly, terrifying. Rickards tells a fascinating story, taking the reader from the use of gold as an international currency in the Sixth century BC up to the current day, seamlessly connecting historical events in a manner that will appeal to experts and novices alike. His reductionist descriptions and gallows humor spares no one, and his analogies are both informative and beautifully written. Currency Wars is a must read for everyone, from classically-trained economists to small-time investors. But beware: after you read this book, instead of stuffing your mattress with cash, you may be inclined to do so with gold bullion.

If you have the stomach for doing a deep dive into the causes and cures of the worldwide financial morass we're in, here it is! "Currency Wars" takes you on a journey unlike any other. From a firsthand account of the wranglings at a mock "financial war game" in the bowels of the Pentagon, through a rich and literate history of previous currency wars with their devastating outcomes, Rickards is in full command of his topic. The author then brings us right up to present moment where he offers possible endgame scenarios to this latest currency war: paper, gold, or chaos! With outcome uncertain and stakes sky high, the tension is palpable! The final chapter is simply mind blowing! But that's not all. "Currency Wars" isn't simply an economics or history book. Rickards gives us a lot more. Chapter 9 is the most stinging indictment yet of the policy and intellectual failures of the Fed, Keynesianism and Monetarism. When you finish Chapter 9 your faith in economic conventional wisdom will be thoroughly shattered. The author also offers up some of the most original theory and analysis in economics since John Maynard Keynes himself in the 1920's. It's conceptually challenging but well worth the effort.

Unlike the financial meltdown of '08, this time you can say you've been warned. Extremely timely, and yet ahead of its time, "Currency Wars" is a revelation. The Media and politicians are so far behind the curve on this story that once they start giving it some weight it will already be too late to save yourself financially. You must read this book now!

A currency war is a desperate and dark road your government takes you down when they become incapable of spurring domestic growth by any other means. But "stealing" growth from other countries by printing tons of money and cheapening one's own currency comes with an enormous price tag. In the new and complex arena of "geo-politics meets financial warfare," James Rickards is an intellectual tour de force. "Currency Wars" takes us on a whirlwind global tour from Peking to Moscow to Dubai, where governments and even everyday citizens are already hedging themselves against a declining U.S. Dollar. Sadly, most Americans are completely unaware of the dangers surrounding them and are still just hoping for the best. "Currency Wars" gives us a full understanding of the forces and players involved in taking us into this financial firestorm that's about to flashover. Once armed with this book, everyday Americans will also have a fighting chance. Thank you James!

This is a MUST READ for all of us as we watch the turmoil in the markets today. Very interesting, hard to put down review of traditional currency policy, including the origins of the FED and the rise and fall of the gold standard, together with solid analysis and arguments for changes needed in monetary policy will have you turning pages. Rickards has done his homework and his grasp of subject matter will have you asking for more when you've read the final page!

The real test of any business or finance book is - "Did it change my thinking or my behavior?"

The answer to Jim Rickards's "Currency War's" is a resounding yes. I have gone from endorsing a Warren Buffet like view of investing in gold, i.e. little economic value in the yellow metal, to reallocating a sizable portion of my portfolio to gold and gold miners.

Rickard's work does an outstanding job of giving an over view of the evolving set of financial and economic theories that are driving current economic thought. And more importantly, he brings a great perspective to the complexity and unpredictability of future economic outcomes. The end game is not pretty!

With his background as a senior executive at Long Term Capital, Mr. Rickards had a ringside seat watching what was then viewed as the smartest and best financial minds nearly create a global crisis.

The making of the next global crisis becomes very clear in this well written book.

Currency Wars is not a typical book about finance. It is, however, a fascinating path to understanding money, history and war. The first chapter reels you in with what happens behind the doors in a top secret weapons laboratory. This time the weapon is currency and stocks.
The reader understands for the first time, how global leaders from Dubai, to Moscow to Peking are building a cache of financial weapons while the US sits this one out.

Rickards shatters your faith in conventional economic wisdom. The final chapter challenges the reader: "Paper, Gold, or Chaos?" Required reading for everyone since we cannot rely on the Fed to do the intellectually challenging work that Rickards has done.

Mr. Rickards has done an awesome job with this work. I feel that he was able to take a fairly complex subject and bring it down to earth without watering down the technical aspects too much. An excellent read, that shines light on a series of possible future scenarios that might play out in the near future. Even if you disagree with his thesis, you can't help but appreciate the details of his arguments. An excellent book.

This book, just released, should be read as a benchmark in understanding this era, along with Nassim Nicholas Taleb's "Black Swan" (Not the perverted movie, but the excellent book on unforeseen events). "Currency Wars" is history, biography, finance, economics, a war-games thriller, and all true. The author has performed a great service by providing sane analysis of currency wars past and present. One can only hope that someone in a position of power gets it.

James Rickards demonstrates convincingly that currency wars have had a poor track record over time. These wars are mutually destructive because they invite retaliation and have unintended consequences. Despite this poor track record, central banks continue to resort to this "beggar-my-neighbor" policy. Think for instance about the U.S. Federal Reserve and its unofficial dual mandate of easy money and dollar devaluation. Mr. Rickards is definitely at his best in his scathing overview of the misuse of economics in chapter 9. The U.S. Federal Reserve comes out as an underperforming organization that clearly does not deliver on its official dual mandate of price stability and full employment. Monetarism, Keynesianism, and financial economics are all riddled with flaws with no definitive solution in sight to this day. Mr. Rickards relies on the complexity-based, money-as-energy model to get insight in how what he calls Currency War III (2010-?) will evolve if money printing and debt expansion continue unabated. The U.S. should not take the role of the U.S. dollar as the leading reserve currency for granted. Mr. Rickards explores the four possible outcomes in prospect for the U.S. dollar in order of increasing disruptive potential. These scenarios are multiple reserve currencies, special drawing rights (SDRs), the return of the gold standard (the author's preference), and chaos. To avert the possible collapse of the U.S. dollar, Mr. Rickards pleads for a mix of descaling, compartmentalization, and simplification that aim at shrinking or simplifying the financial system. Mr. Rickards is at his weakest on this subject because of a lack of a detailed action plan. In summary, "Currency Wars" is a good introduction to a subject in need of more visibility.