Towards North American Monetary Union?: The Politics and History of Canada's Exchange Rate Regime

Many believe that Canada's deepening economic integration with the United States and the worldwide trend towards currency blocs will eventually lead to a North American monetary union. In the first detailed analysis of Canadian exchange rate politics, Eric Helleiner challenges this view. Helleiner finds little support in the US for the concessions that would be necessary to make a North American monetary union palatable in Canada. Comparing the US Federal Reserve and the European Monetary Union, he argues that Canada would exercise far less influence within a North American monetary union than individual countries do within the European community. He also analyses the seemingly paradoxical support of Quebec sovereignists for free trade and monetary union. "Towards North American Monetary Union!" explores Canada's unusually strong commitment throughout the twentieth century to a floating exchange rate for its national currency - a commitment that Heilleiner argues is likely to endure.