A History of Interest Rates is in its fourth edition, with the last edition published in 1996. The book presents a very readable account of interest rate trends and lending practices spanning over four millennia of economic history. Despite the paucity of data prior to the Industrial Revolution, the book manages to present a highly detailed analysis of money markets and borrowing practices in major economies. A History of Interest Rates provides a broad perspective on interest rate movements, avoiding anecdotal evidence if possible, and applying analytical tools such a yield curves averaging available date over long time periods. Underlying the analysis is thesis of the book, summed up by the authors assertion that the free market long-term rates of interest for any industrial nation, properly charted, provide a sort of fever chart of the economic and political health of that nation. Given the enormous volatility of rates in the 20th century, the book implies were living in age of political and economic excesses which are reflected in massive interest rate swings.
Book Details:
- Author: Sidney Homer
- ISBN: 9780470325452
- Year Published: 2005
- Pages: 736
- BISAC: BUS027000, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS/Finance
About the Book and Topic:
A History of Interest Rates is in its fourth edition, with the last edition published in 1996. The book presents a very readable account of interest rate trends and lending practices spanning over four millennia of economic history. Despite the paucity of data prior to the Industrial Revolution, the book manages to present a highly detailed analysis of money markets and borrowing practices in major economies. A History of Interest Rates provides a broad perspective on interest rate movements, avoiding anecdotal evidence if possible, and applying analytical tools such a yield curves averaging available date over long time periods. Underlying the analysis is thesis of the book, summed up by the authors assertion that the free market long-term rates of interest for any industrial nation, properly charted, provide a sort of fever chart of the economic and political health of that nation. Given the enormous volatility of rates in the 20th century, the book implies were living in age of political and economic excesses which are reflected in massive interest rate swings.
Interest rate developments provide a trail of clues into a nations economic, political, and financial market health. Throughout history, interest rate fluctuations have paralleled significant historical developments. For much of the 19th Century, relatively low and stable rates provided a fundamental stability that encouraged U.S. economic growth and territorial expansion. The 20th Century has witnessed a great deal of international interest rate instability which coincided with the rise of Nazism, the developing worlds debt crisis, and the rise and decline of Japans economy.
Well have numerous endorsements testifying to the books enduring value and financial classic status. Author Reputation. Sidney Homer was one of the most important and influential bond market analyst in the 1960s and 1970s. His other important book, Inside the Yield Book, which he co-authored with Martin Liebowitz, is being reissued this year by Bloomberg. The re-issuance will serve our purpose in that it will help revive Homers visibility. Large, untapped audience. The book has a cult-like status among a small number of financial professionals but because of marginal distribution, many potential buyers never heard of the title. The book has a very similar appeal as other works of financial market history, many of which have sold very well through Wiley. Contemporary material. We will have a new chapter added discussing interest rate developments over the past ten years and a new forward.
About the Author
Sidney Homer, who died in 1983, was a limited partner in Salomon Brothers and was the general partner in charge of the firms bond market research department. He is best known for his pioneering and analytical works of bond market history and the economic forces which drive bond market trends. He is author of several books including, Inside the Yield Book (scheduled for re-release this year by Bloomberg), the Bond Buyers Primer, and The Price of Money. Richard Sylla (New York, NY) is the Henry Kaufman professor of the History of Financial Institutions and Markets and a professor of economic, entrepreneurship, and innovation at NYUs Stern School of Business. His has been published in numerous journals and is co-author of two other books: The History of Corporate Finance and The Evolution of the American Economy. He is a past president of the Economic History Association and is a trustee of the Museum of American Financial History. Foreword by Henry Kaufman, the former head of research at Salomon Brothers and renowned for his ability to move markets as a result of his forecasts of interest rates.