The Fearful Rise of Markets

Book excerpt: “Concise, relevant, and perceptive…this book should be read by all those interested in the way markets operate, be they investors, analysts, or policy makers." -From the Foreword by Mohamed A. El-Erian, CEO and co-CIO of PIMCO, and author of When Markets Collide “A must-read for anyone concerned about how we can avoid recurring debt-induced busts in the years ahead, or anyone who wonders how to invest if (when!) the crisis returns. Authers' insights on the global financial crisis are profound." -Robert D. Arnott, Chairman, Research Affiliates, LLC ”In a crowded field of works on the financial crisis, Authers' work is unique in both its insight and style." -Robert R. Johnson, Ph.D., CFA, Senior Managing Director of the CFA Institute "John Authers has combined his journalistically honed FT skills with great insights. Serious investors and policy makers should read this book.” -David R. Kotok, Chairman and Chief Investment Officer of Cumberland Advisors "John masterfully drives a stake through the myth of global economic decoupling one chapter and example at a time. A must-read in today's economy." -Vitaliy Katsenelson, Director of Research at Investment Management Associates, Inc, author of Active Value Investing: Making Money in Range-Bound Markets Award-winning Financial Times journalist John Authers explains the multiple roots of repeated financial crises. He explains why it is that investment bubbles now form all at once, all across the world and why so many markets that were once considered disconnected are now able to collapse all at the same time. He offers a strategy for preventing future financial disasters. Market bubbles are growing ever bigger, ever more terrifying. As soon as one ends, the next one seems already to be inflating. Multiple markets, once disconnected, are aligning in ways that are increasingly unpredictable and uncontrollable. Something has changed. What can we do about it? The Fearful Rise of Markets explains how the world’s markets became synchronised, how they formed a bubble, how they all managed to crash together and then rebound together, and what can be done to prevent another synchronised bust in future. From post-Depression regulation and the 1954 recovery from the Great Crash, through the innovations and mis-steps that led to the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, to the markets rally of 2009, The Fearful Rise of Markets details massive shifts in the way our money is invested, and in the global balance of economic power.