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Marshall Plan

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Abstract

The Marshall Plan transferred over US$12.5 billion to Western European countries between 1948 and 1951. This article contrasts the main views on its impact on the post-war European performance. It concludes that, although the direct impact of the plan through private and public investment was rather limited, Marshall Aid provided the recipient economies with a temporary solution for the severe dollar constraint that posed a threat to the continuation of the European miracle. Furthermore the Plan played an important role in promoting collaboration among former adversaries.

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Bibliography

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Acknowledgment

I would like to thank Markus Poschke for helpful comments and suggestions. Of course all remaining errors are mine.

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© 2018 Macmillan Publishers Ltd.

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Alvarez-Cuadrado, F. (2018). Marshall Plan. In: The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-349-95189-5_2964

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