Context of 'October 6, 1979: US Federal Reserve Announces Tightening of Money Supply'

The US Federal Reserve, under recent Carter appointee Paul Volcker, declares that it will begin a major policy shift by tightening the money supply. Its main method of doing so will be significant increases in the interest rate. [Campbell, 2005, pp. 194-195]

Entity Tags: Paul Volcker, US Federal Reserve

Timeline Tags: Neoliberalism and Globalization

As a result of Paul Volcker’s tightening of the US money supply (see October 6, 1979), 145 developing and emerging market economies pay a total of $7.673 trillion (in current dollars) in order to service their external debts. $675 billion of this money comes from Africa, the poorest continent in the world. Despite these massive payments, the external debt held by these nations actually increases from $618 billion in 1980 to $3.150 trillion in 2006. [Nakatani and Herera, 6/2007]

Timeline Tags: Neoliberalism and Globalization

A combination of factors puts the Mexico into a major balance of payments crisis. US Federal Reserve Bank Chairman Paul Volcker’s decision to increase the Federal Reserve’s interest rate (see October 6, 1979) increases the amount of debt held by the Mexican government. In addition, a decrease in the global price of oil and a recession in the US (thereby decreasing US demand for Mexican goods) makes it harder for Mexico to pay off the debt on its own. The Mexican government decides to devalue the peso, its national currency, by 78 percent. [Hart-Landsberg, 12/2002]

Entity Tags: Mexico, Paul Volcker

Timeline Tags: Neoliberalism and Globalization

“Brick” of $400,000 in U.S. Currency (4,000 $100 bills) [Source: Federal Reserve Bank of New York] (click image to enlarge)At the request of the Coalition Provisional Authority, the Federal Reserve Bank sends the CPA $1.5 billion in cash. The money is drawn from the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI) and special US Treasury accounts containing revenues from sales of Iraqi oil exports, surplus dollars from the UN-run oil-for-food program, and frozen assets that belonged to the government of Saddam Hussein. [US Congress, 2/6/2007 ; Reuters, 2/7/2007]

Entity Tags: US Federal Reserve, Coalition Provisional Authority

Timeline Tags: Iraq under US Occupation

Pallets of US Currency Arriving in Iraq [Source: US Congress. House Committee on Government Reform] (click image to enlarge)At the request of the Coalition Provisional Authority, the Federal Reserve Bank sends the CPA $2.4 billion in cash. This is the largest cash pay-out of US currency in Federal Reserve history. This shipment is quickly followed by another large shipment three days later (see June 25, 2004). The money is drawn from the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI)and special US Treasury accounts containing revenues from sales of Iraqi oil exports, surplus dollars from the UN-run oil-for-food program, and frozen assets that belonged to the government of Saddam Hussein. [US Congress, 2/6/2007 ; Reuters, 2/7/2007]

Entity Tags: US Federal Reserve, Coalition Provisional Authority

Timeline Tags: Iraq under US Occupation