Historically, Latin American political regimes have sought to postpone far-reaching economic reforms and improvements in living standards in order to facilitate the accumulation of private capital. These goals have led to exclusion of the lower classes from the political process altogether or to...

Intro -- Contents -- I. INTRODUCTION -- II. THE FRAMEWORK FOR ASSESSING THE BANKING SECTOR: LONG-TERM TRENDS AND SHORT- TERM DEVELOPMENTS -- III. ASSESSING THE SOUNDNESS OF THE BANKING SECTOR -- IV. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION -- BIBLIOGRAPHY.

Intro -- Title Page -- Copyright -- Contents -- Preface and Acknowledgments -- List of Abbreviations -- Part One: Introduction -- 1. Accounting for Growth and Decline in Venezuela -- 2. Trends and Cycles in the Venezuelan Economy -- Part Two: A Critical Survey of the "Resource Curse" Literature...