PAUL ERDMAN'S MONEY BOOK: An Investor's Guide to Economics and Finance

by Paul Erdman ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 12, 1984

Worldly-wise bestselling novelist Erdman (The Crash of '79, The Last Days of America) is also a Ph.D. economist with experience in international banking, the investment field, and industry. Here, with his customary irreverence, he reports on the economic state-of-the-world and recommends individual financial strategies accordingly. Erdman's favorite word is why. After the Mexican debt crisis in mid-'82, why did stock and bond markets soar? The answer: the forced decline in interest rates. Constantly posing questions, Erdman explores in turn: the resilience of the capitalist economic system--can it withstand further shocks? The solvency of our financial institutions--""if things suddenly get worse?"" US and world borrowing needs, for social and military programs--""how will the governments raise the money?"" Regarding the next few years, Erdman adopts the optimists' ""low-inflation, high-growth scenario."" (""The answer to the growth problem""--reasonably--""is the development of the high-technology industries which, as they come along, will send out ripple effects to revive 'support' industries, ranging from housing to, yes, even automobiles."") Then, for the coming two-year ""period of grace,"" he weighs the pros and cons of bank money-market accounts (protection against both inflation and default)--plus bonds and government securities, gold, real estate, stocks, and other investment options. You don't have to be steeped in economic theory, or even a regular investor, to enjoy and appreciate Erdman--who gives a sly, gleeful twist to all sorts of familiar currents and concerns. (Remember when Regulation Q went? ""Voila! We small savers were now making 8 percent on our money in terms of purchasing power instead of losing 7 percent."")

Pub Date: April 12, 1984

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1984

Categories: NONFICTION