by William W. Lewis
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Product Description
The disparity between rich and poor countries is the most serious, intractable problem facing the world today. Chronic poverty affects more than the citizens and economies of these nations; it threatens global stability as the pressures of immigration become unsustainable and rogue nations seek power and influence through extreme political and terrorist acts.
For decades, a vast array of international institutions has pumped billions of dollars into these nations in an attempt to remedy their ills through the development of technological infrastructures, educational systems, and health care programs. Yet despite this infusion of capital and attention, roughly five billion of the world's six billion people continue to live in poverty. What isn't working? And how can we fix it?
The Power of Productivity provides powerful and controversial answers to these questions. William Lewis, director emeritus of the McKinsey Global Institute, draws on extensive microeconomic studies of thirteen nations—conducted over twelve years by the Institute itself—to counter virtually all prevailing wisdom about how best to ameliorate economic disparity. The key to reducing economic inequalities between rich and poor countries, argues Lewis, is productivity and its links to competition and consumption. Diagnosing problems and offering solutions, The Power of Productivity will inform political and economic debate throughout the world for years to come.
"Lewis . . . offers a detailed look at the local economies in several parts of the world including the U.S., Japan, India and Brazil. . . . This is an insightful treatment of a complex issue that deserves a wide readership."—Publishers Weekly
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Why the US is #1, 2008-07-14
I read this book over two years ago; it is an astonishing tour de force that has completely changed my understanding of the world economy. It provides a review of the global economy that is both deep and broad, and it explains why the good old USA is the most productive economy of all.
But wait, you say, what about Japan and Toyota and Honda? Very true; they are more productive than US auto companies, but the high productivity firms only represent 10 percent of GDP in Japan. The rest of the Japanese economy--retail, construction, and food processing--is woefully inefficient. (And that means, for you environmentalists, that it is wasting resources.)
You see, it's not high-tech that drives productivity, it's "the productivity of every worker that matters... [It's] the productivity of the massive number of workers in retailing, wholesaling, and construction that give the United States the highest GDP per capita in the world."
Can you spell Wal-Mart?
There are startling insights throughout the book. Did you know that the US standardized lumber sizes in the 1910s and 1920s? Did you know that in many countries the government enterprises don't pay their electric power bills?
Lewis has unconventional ideas on education. Education is important, but, for the great mass of people, not that important. Businesses need people who are trainable, not fabulously educated.
It all adds up to this. The US is best not because we are so great but because we put the fewest roadblocks in the way of productive workers and businesses. The privileged are privileged, but just not as much as elsewhere in the world.
1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Interesting economic perspective on various countries. , 2006-10-26
This book is an interesting economic perspective on why some countries prosper and others don't. Overall, the book is heavily pro-American and the fact that the author uses the U.S. as the benchmark for his comparisons with other countries is a testament to that. The rosy explanations on the U.S. chapter reinforces the belief that it is a pro-US book.
However, it beautifully covers some of the flaws found in third world economies, especially interesting on its analysis in Brazil and India. The answer is simple, government chokes and distorts market and is much to blame for poverty and low productivity in third world countries.
All in all its a good book, but its focus is too U.S. based. Not that there is nothing wrong with that, but books that show U.S. as a near utopia and the rest of the world as problem plague are not to my liking in general, simply because no country on earth is perfect, thus whatever defects exist in the U.S. economy should had been mentioned. As an economist, I was dissapointed with the way the author avoided discussing potential problems in U.S. economy, but was more than pleased with its assessment as to why third world economies don't function as smooth and first world economies.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Limitations of economies world wide, 2006-03-30
This is an outstanding book if you want to gain some understanding of the strengths and weakensses of economies world wide. This book is essentially a group of chapters describung the differences of various other world economies compared against the US economy. The revelations of the problems in some of those economies is very revealing. For example, if you worry at night about the Indian economy, you will sleep much better after reading his chapter of the many ways the Indian government distorts their markets and guarantees bad results. You will also be amazed that only 10% of the land has clear ownership, meaning one must be extordinarily careful or one can end up in a long legal entanglement. The description of the laws forbidding large players to participate in certain sectors of their economy also is revealing.
Similarly, the descriptions of the problems of the Brazilian economy with its underground economy and formal economy is also very illuminating. Large rconomy of scale businesses competing with informal off the books busninesses. Since the off the books businesses pay lousy wages and pay no taxes they can compete with the larger businesses which have economies of scale. Mr Lewis also points out how the sector which does compete within the legal rules have a very heavy tax burden which retards growth. The legacy of hyperinflation, a well known
phenomenon in South America also means that obtaining a mortgage is impossible, houses must be paid for cash on the barrelhead, as nobody will take a 30 year risk on inflation there.
Mr Lewis's book has chapters on representative economies from all over the world. Japan, Russia, Korea, India, Western Europe,
Brazil are included. The only place of high interest which is not included is China. Regardless, the information contained is fascinating.
I also gained some new insights from this book and perhaps a bit of new respect for certain sectors. I must say Mr Lewis makes some very interesting points which have certainly increased my regard for the retailing and service sectors of an economy by pointing out some of the low tech manners in which they have innovated to increase productivity. He also shows how inefficient certain other economies are because they dont allow foreign competitiors to operate in retailing in their economies and the dramatic inefficiencies created as a result.
Overall I rate this as one of the best books I have read in a long time.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
A great book, 2006-02-25
I was happy to see many of the questions I've had for years, answered. The book is very well written for the non-economist who wants to be informed about the major economic problems of the world.
I also purchased 'DOING BUSINESS IN 2006' published by the World Bank. It corroborates the general ideas presented in "The Power of Productivity" to a great extent. A great book.
4 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
 Productivity rules in one particular economic doctrine, 2005-11-16
Marx once said that he was not a Marxist [Attributed by Engels, letter to C. Schmidt, 1890]. It looks like William Lewis is not allowed that luxury, for in a sense the claim that it is productivity that matters most is a pure Marxists claim.
So there is a contradiction. The book that promotes "free market" extremism like "free market no matter what" in its major thesis looks suspiciously close to Marxist philosophy.
Actually extremes meet and the author's idea "If poor countries improved productivity and balanced their budgets, they would have plenty of capital for growth from domestic savers and foreign investors" is a clear sign that he is living in some Utopia and does not undestand the role of third world debt as a major instrument for controlling the governments of those countries. This process is designed to perpetuate itself whereby debt replicates itself on an ever greater scale.
For example odious debt of former communist countries was never cancelled and people of xUSSR paid and will pay huge prices for this. Legally, odious debt is debt that resulted from loans to an illegitimate or dictatorial government that used the money to oppress the people or for personal purposes.
Rich nations also ncur debts, but often the wealthier and more powerful ones are able to use various means to avoid getting into the dilemmas and problems the poor nations get into. It's easier to have debt if your own currency is the world reserve currency.
That means that globalization like medicine should not be applied uncritically. The real question is about the right doze of everything. Here is a couple of nice quotes for Asia Times Review of the same book, the review that debunks the myths propagated by the book:
"Of the world's 6 billion people, 5 billion live in countries with per capita gross domestic product (GDP) 25% or less of the US figure; in fact, a majority of the poor live where GDP is less than 10% of Uncle Sam's. Particularly troubling, author William W Lewis says, Japan was the only country to go from poor to rich during the past century, though he adds that Japanese government development strategies credited with the advance were a hindrance, not a help. "
"The failure of free-market radicalism to solve crises and deliver real, sustainable economic growth has prompted a reassessment. Perhaps wrenching open developing markets to global competition without reference to local conditions and politics is not the best prescription in every case. They also note that the fastest-growing economy over the past two decades features 'socialism with Chinese characteristics'. "
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