Except the Brazilian experience which may not have qualified for 'hyperinflation' until the later stages of the inflation, which was humongous. The Brazilian episode was nearly 2 long decades of inflation.
Oddly enough, that data point isn't present in the chart so I present it here:
I'm surprised they left off Argentina? I thought this was one of the last major episodes in the '90's.
Oh man, I hate to even say it...but...I also notice Israel is missing from the '80's. I tried to find reference to it in Wikipedia but it seems to have been removed. Here's a GN article where he quotes the entry from wiki: http://lewrockwell.com/north/north1031.html Now, I have to go hide before the jack boots find me.
Any thoughts on why WaPo would leave off these two?
You make a good point on Argentina, my wife was doing business in that country when it hit. It seized everything up and became a worthless territory for her during that period.
Her company ended up taking a bath on around $200,000 in equipment.
To the credit of her associates in the country they start resuming payment on the balance after the crisis...but during it their hands were tied. They were Italian immigrants and most of their family ended up moving to Spain during the crisis.
According to the book Gold - The Once and Future Money by Nathan Lewis, Japan also experienced hyperinflation in the 1940s. Page 322:
From 1946 to 1949, the occupation government led by General Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, had near-complete control over economic policy. Stafed by New Dealers, the SCAP's policies were disastrous. In the period from 1946-1949, income taxes were raised and made more progressive; corporate taxes were pushed higher and excess-profits were imposed that did not allow depreciation alowances to be adjusted for inflation; a heavy levy on wealth was applied; and excise taxes were increased, including the introduction of a VAT tax. This was bad by any measure, but at the same time the yen, which trade around 2 yen per dollar before the war, was radically devalued in an effort to reduce unemployment. In 1944, about 17.7 billion yen of currency circulated. In 1948, under SCAP oversight, the amount of currency in circulation had expanded to 355.3 billion yen. Hyperinflation wracked the country, and large swaths of the economy went underground to escape the tax collector. At the end of 1939, the yen traded at 4.264 yen per dollar, and at the end of 1946, as SCAP's rule began, the yen was temporarily pegged at 15 yen per dollar. By 1949, under SCAP, the yen's value had falen to less than 1/300 of a dollar
I'd like to know how many of these instances ended without further socialization of the banking sector and the means of production. My guess is not many, which would indicate that our current situation might be by design.
207% daily inflation rate = 8.62%/hour. Now THAT'S what I call a crack-up boom.
ReplyDeleteThis is a fascinating chart. Thank you greatly for posting it.
ReplyDeleteThe one "good" thing about it is that it looks like once it starts it's over for the most in 2 years or less.
Except the Brazilian experience which may not have qualified for 'hyperinflation' until the later stages of the inflation, which was humongous. The Brazilian episode was nearly 2 long decades of inflation.
DeleteOddly enough, that data point isn't present in the chart so I present it here:
http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/brazilinfl.htm
If anyone has a better source, please leave it below so we can check it out.
I'm surprised they left off Argentina? I thought this was one of the last major episodes in the '90's.
ReplyDeleteOh man, I hate to even say it...but...I also notice Israel is missing from the '80's. I tried to find reference to it in Wikipedia but it seems to have been removed. Here's a GN article where he quotes the entry from wiki:
http://lewrockwell.com/north/north1031.html
Now, I have to go hide before the jack boots find me.
Any thoughts on why WaPo would leave off these two?
You make a good point on Argentina, my wife was doing business in that country when it hit. It seized everything up and became a worthless territory for her during that period.
DeleteHer company ended up taking a bath on around $200,000 in equipment.
To the credit of her associates in the country they start resuming payment on the balance after the crisis...but during it their hands were tied. They were Italian immigrants and most of their family ended up moving to Spain during the crisis.
I don't believe that either of these inflations ever reached triple digits on a monthly basis.
DeleteIsrael's high inflation is listed under "chronic" inflation:
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_inflation#Israel
According to the book Gold - The Once and Future Money by Nathan Lewis, Japan also experienced hyperinflation in the 1940s. Page 322:
ReplyDeleteFrom 1946 to 1949, the occupation government led by General Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, had near-complete control over economic policy. Stafed by New Dealers, the SCAP's policies were disastrous. In the period from 1946-1949, income taxes were raised and made more progressive; corporate taxes were pushed higher and excess-profits were imposed that did not allow depreciation alowances to be adjusted for inflation; a heavy levy on wealth was applied; and excise taxes were increased, including the introduction of a VAT tax.
This was bad by any measure, but at the same time the yen, which trade around 2 yen per dollar before the war, was radically devalued in an effort to reduce unemployment. In 1944, about 17.7 billion yen of currency circulated. In 1948, under SCAP oversight, the amount of currency in circulation had expanded to 355.3 billion yen. Hyperinflation wracked the country, and large swaths of the economy went underground to escape the tax collector. At the end of 1939, the yen traded at 4.264 yen per dollar, and at the end of 1946, as SCAP's rule began, the yen was temporarily pegged at 15 yen per dollar. By 1949, under SCAP, the yen's value had falen to less than 1/300 of a dollar
I'd like to know how many of these instances ended without further socialization of the banking sector and the means of production. My guess is not many, which would indicate that our current situation might be by design.
ReplyDelete