Monetary theories and the evolution of the international monetary and financial system

Anthony M. Endres in his 2005 book, has stressed the part player by some economists in the design of the international monetary system during the Bretton Woods era. He proposed a classification of their doctrines and proposals in a table where fifteen economists are mentioned for ten proposals (Hansen, Williams, Graham, Triffin, Simons, Friedman/Johnson, Mises/Rueff/Heilperin/Hayek/Röpke, Harrod, Mundell). Among them only one French economist, Jacques Rueff, is to be found but he did not stand alone but merged with those of other "paleo-liberals". At the opposite, in his 2007 book, Rawi Abdelal pointed the predominant part played by French statesmen in the evolution of the international monetary system during the last decades, especially during the building up of the euro area and the liberalization of the capital movements. The article outlines the key stages in the evolution of the international monetary system and the part played by French actors in the forefront of the scene (Jacques Delors – European commission, Pascal Lamy, WTO, or in the wings (Chavranski, OECD). Among the six persons who are singled out by Rawi Abedal or made it in the book of Ivo Maas, it is striking that four have been trained in the National School of Administration. For his part, Jacques Delors graduated in law at Faculté de Droit of Paris where Charles Rist was an authority for monetary matters. Thereafter he began his carreer at Banque de France. Paradoxically most of them had a background leaning towards a significant role of the State in the nation economy whereas Maurice Allais (1911 –2010), the major figure of the French liberalism during the second half of the 20th century was a tireless opponent to "laissez-fairism" and liberal globalization.