This collection of survey articles sheds light on crucial questions in the field of monetary, financial and macroeconomic policy.

• Applies rigorous economic theory and empirical analysis to important practical policy issues.
  
• Considers the role of the financial sector in economic development.
  
• Looks at why financial crises occur and how they can be avoided.
  
• Discusses the relationship between macroeconomic adjustment and poverty.
  
• Asks if low-inflation rate regimes are at risk from the ‘zero bound’ to nominal interest rates.
  
• Provides accessible overviews of recent research into these questions.

Stuart Sayer is Senior Lecturer and Head of Economics at the University of Edinburgh. He is the Co-founder and Senior Editor of the Journal of Economic Surveys and his previous publications include Issues in New Political Economy (ed., Blackwell Publishing, 2001).