The desire for economic cooperation stemmed from fear of repeating
the post-World War I mistakes that had led to inflation, financial
instability, and the Great Depression. While World War II still raged,
Allied policy makers debated several plans for international monetary
stability:
-
The U.S. proposal by Harry Dexter White
- The
U.K. proposal by John Maynard Keynes
- Proposals
from France and Canada
Keynes
called for an International Currency Union, which would function
as a "central bank" for the central banks of each country.
White, on the other hand, called for a fund to which all member
countries would contribute. Both agreed on fixed, but adjustable,
exchange rates based on gold.
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credits
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Travel
to the United States was difficult and treacherous in the midst
of the war, but, incredibly, representatives from 44 countries managed
to gather for a conference at Bretton Woods in New Hampshire. Their
ambitious goal - to design the framework for postwar international
economic cooperation. D-Day had taken place three weeks previously,
giving the delegates hope that the war would soon end.
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