Juggernaut

Against the long sweep of economic history, the current moment is unique. Living standards have advanced so rapidly and across so many countries over the last decade that it is difficult to think of parallels, and even the deepest recession since the Great Depression has not halted the progress. In Juggernaut, Uri Dadush and William Shaw explore the major trends associated with the rise of developing countries, including increased manufacturing, expansion in world trade, and, ultimately, improved living and working conditions, as well as the broad challenges those trends pose. They also identify policy approaches for dealing with the coming changes, such as reducing high import tariffs, forging new links in trade and finance through regional agreements, and encouraging private investments in specialized skills and R&D. Using plausible assumptions, Dadush and Shaw project that the world economy will more than triple over the next forty years. The advance of a large group of developing countries-that are home to most of the world's population but were dismissed as supplicants rather than trendsetters a generation ago-will drive this improvement. In the years to come, their rise will present great opportunities, but will also pose great challenges. Juggernaut examines both.