New World Economies

Book excerpt: "New World Economies is a valuable addition to the body of literature about economic development in eighteenth-century North America, and a much-needed comparative study of the British and French colonies. Egnal presents a cogent explanation for why the staple export thesis has not adequately explained economic growth in the colonial period, and makes a clear and compelling case that changes in the terms of trade and capital inflows were the more influential forces emanating from the international sector. From that perspective, the links between the British and French colonies and their respective mother countries were the primary determinants of the pace and timing of development. The book's argument is strengthened by examining these forces at the regional and sectoral levels, and by stressing the fluctuations in economic fortunes over the century. Domestic influences, such as productivity growth, are of secondary importance in Egnal's scheme, but nevertheless are given more prominence than they have had in previous work. This book is superbly written and contains a valuable array of charts, tables, and new time series on prices of specific exports and imports. New World Economies will be the starting point for any future research on the economic development of the British and French colonies in the eighteenth century."--Thomas Weiss, University of Kansas