The face of capitalism has changed, as can be seen now at the start of the twenty-first century. The booming industrial capitalism of the post-war years and the consumer society of the 1960s and 1970s have been replaced by a form of financial capitalism, whose vast net reaches out throughout the globe. Today, chief executives are no longer motivated by profit but by increasing the value of their companies’ shares.
Michel Aglietta and Laurent Barrebi reveal and explain the inner workings of financial capitalism; they show the disorder it creates in the different markets (the job market, as well as the monetary, financial and real estate markets) and how it results in speculative bubbles in various sectors (real estate, Internet, etc), which ultimately burst and lead to crises.
They describe, in minute detail, the four types of financial capitalism that have developed over the past two decades: in the United States, Europe, Japan and China.
The authors do not simply note these developments; they also propose remedies, urging central banks and the International Monetary Fund to find a new way of managing the world economy. They also outline the role that France could play in this new international economy.

This new book by one of the leaders of critical economics is a penetrating analysis of how our economic system works, and it will enable readers to understand the disorders that are apparent in their own job and housing situations.

Michel Aglietta, one of France’s most respected economists, is a professor at the University of Paris X-Nanterre.
Laurent Berrebi, an economist, is in charge of economic studies for Groupama, a mutual insurance company.