The financial crisis: Lessons for international macroeconomics

This article introduces a special section of the American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, containing five papers presented during a conference in Paris in October 2011. The aim of the conference was to derive lessons from the financial crisis, for research on international macroeconomics and for policy. The article opens with a summary of the key mechanisms at play during the crisis. The question of the crisis transmission across borders is addressed, with a focus on international trade and financial institutions. Recent advances in the analysis of sovereign default risk are also discussed. The article concludes with a discussion of policy responses to the crisis.