"In the 2007 Wincott Lecture the author argues that global current account imbalances are an indication of 'intertemporal trade'. Savings and investment, both private and public, determine the imbalances. He expounds Richard Cooper's argument that it is perfectly natural for the USA to have a...

"The international current account imbalances, whereby the USA has a vast deficit and several countries, notably Japan, China, Germany and the oil exporters, have corresponding surpluses, are usually seen as problems. The argument here is that current account imbalances simply indicate...