Marshal Plan

[Brad De Long]

>Concerning the Marshal Plan
>
>>From the Znet forum Noam wrote:
>
>What you say is exactly right. The funding (by US
>taxpayers) approximately matched the capital from
>Europe to NY banks, capital which could have been
>used for reconstruction from the war -- but that
>would not have enriched wealthy Europeans further
>or strengthened the international dominance of US
>banks.  All of this was well-known and discussed
>at the time.  A standard source is Eric Helleiner,
>_States and the Reemergence of Global Finance_
>(Cornell 1994).
>
>Noam Chomsky

Ummm...

In general, counting is good...

US Imports and Exports of Goods and Services, Billions of Dollars:

	1946	1947	1948	1949	1950	1951	1952

	====	====	====	====	====	====	====
Exports:	14.1	18.7	15.5	14.4	12.3	17.0	16.3
Imports:	7.0	7.9	10.1	9.2	11.6	14.6	15.3

If Marshall Plan aid had just matched the net flow of capital from Europe
to New York banks, then U.S. trade would have been roughly balanced during
the Marshall Plan years...

It wasn't.

But why should I expect Noam Chomsky to be any better at arithmetic then,
say, Bob Bartley?

Brad DeLong