Countries left the gold standard at different times (Australia/Argentina late 1929, Britain September 1931 pulling ~18 others, the US April 1933, Belgium 1935, France and the gold bloc late 1936), and this time variation provides a way to identify the economic impact of leaving gold, since leaving allowed reflationary policies, bank stabilization, and recovery as prices rose.

causalpending

Speaker

Douglas Irwin

Evidence Quote

this time variation gives us sort of a way of identifying, you know, what was the impact of going off the depression going off the gold standard

Source

Douglas Irwin on the Great Depression and the Gold Standard 10/11/2010EconTalk
Created: 6/15/2026, 9:36:56 AM

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