Boom-or-Bust Commodities and Industrialization in Pre–World War II Malaya

B-Tier
Journal: Journal of Economic History
Year: 2002
Volume: 62
Issue: 4
Pages: 1074-1115

Authors (1)

Huff, W. G. (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

2.011 = (α=2.01 / 1 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

This article links the terms of trade, money supply, labor market, and money and credit markets to explore a puzzle in Malayan economic history: why, despite rapid growth and high per capita income, did pre–World War II Malaya industrialize so little? A range of data is drawn together to show how for Malayan manufacturers economic boom was accompanied by precipitate deterioration in the real exchange rate, while in a slump credit contracted sharply and with it the size of the Malayan market for manufactures. Analysis of Malayan experience may be relevant for understanding slight industrialization elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:cup:jechis:v:62:y:2002:i:04:p:1074-1115_00
Journal Field
Economic History
Author Count
1
Added to Database
2026-02-02