Bretton Woods system

E1144

The Bretton Woods system was a post–World War II international monetary order in which major currencies were pegged to the U.S. dollar, and the dollar was convertible to gold, creating a fixed exchange rate regime that lasted until the early 1970s.

All labels observed (10)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (52)

Predicate Object
instanceOf fixed exchange rate regime
international monetary system
alsoKnownAs Bretton Woods monetary system
appliesToJurisdiction International Monetary Fund member states
Japan
United Kingdom
United States
Western Europe
basedOn U.S. dollar
linked to: US dollar

gold convertibility of the U.S. dollar
concludedAt Bretton Woods Conference
countryOfEvent United States
creator United States government
dissolvedBecauseOf U.S. balance of payments deficits
growing dollar overhang
suspension of dollar–gold convertibility in 1971
endTime 1971
early 1970s
exchangeRateAnchor U.S. dollar
linked to: US dollar

gold
feature IMF oversight of exchange rate adjustments
U.S. dollar convertible into gold at a fixed price
capital controls in many member countries
par value system for exchange rates
followedBy post–Bretton Woods floating exchange rate system
goal avoid competitive devaluations
facilitate balanced growth of international trade
promote international monetary stability
goldPrice 35 U.S. dollars per troy ounce of gold
hasEffect created a fixed exchange rate regime
facilitated postwar reconstruction and trade expansion
limited exchange rate flexibility
pegged major currencies to the U.S. dollar
promoted exchange rate stability
hasPart International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
linked to: World Bank

International Monetary Fund
World Bank
inception 1944
influencedBy Harry Dexter White
John Maynard Keynes
legalForm international agreement
monetaryPolicyRegime fixed but adjustable exchange rates
namedAfter Bretton Woods, New Hampshire
participant 44 Allied nations
United Kingdom
United States
pointInTime July 1944
replaced interwar competitive devaluation regime
interwar gold exchange standard practices
significantEvent Nixon shock
startTime 1944
post–World War II era

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Referenced by (21)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

US dollar historicalStandard Bretton Woods system
Bretton Woods system alsoKnownAs Bretton Woods monetary system
linked to: Bretton Woods system
Bretton Woods system significantEvent Nixon shock
linked to: Bretton Woods system
Bretton Woods system concludedAt Bretton Woods Conference
linked to: Bretton Woods system
World Bank foundedAt Bretton Woods Conference
linked to: Bretton Woods system
John Maynard Keynes participatedIn Bretton Woods Conference
linked to: Bretton Woods system
Gold Certificate relatedTo United States Gold Standard
linked to: Bretton Woods system
International Clearing Union negotiationContext Bretton Woods negotiations
linked to: Bretton Woods system
European Monetary System precededBy Bretton Woods system
Gold Reserve Act relatedTo Bretton Woods system
Nixon shock monetarySystemAffected Bretton Woods system
Nixon shock predecessorSystem Bretton Woods gold exchange standard
linked to: Bretton Woods system
United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference result Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates
linked to: Bretton Woods system
Pax Americana economicOrder Bretton Woods system
Sterling area relatedTo Bretton Woods system
United States gold policy hasHistoricalPhase Bretton Woods gold–exchange standard era
linked to: Bretton Woods system
Smithsonian Agreement predecessor Bretton Woods system
Articles of Agreement of the International Monetary Fund subjectOf Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates
linked to: Bretton Woods system
Torquay Round of GATT relatedTo Bretton Woods system
Michael D. Bordo topicOfStudy Bretton Woods system
Interim Committee partOf Bretton Woods institutional framework
linked to: Bretton Woods system