Alberto Ullastres
Encyclopedia
Alberto Ullastres was Spain
's Minister of Economy (1957-1965) and Ambassador to the European Economic Community (1965-1976) under General Franco
. He pushed forward the so called Plan of Stabilization which brought about Spain's transition from economic autarchy to liberalization and internationalization of the national economy, an economic success which has been called the Spanish miracle
.
on 15 January 1914 and died in Madrid on 15 November 2001.
He studied Law
and Commerce
. He obtained a doctorate in Law from the University of Madrid
. He was University Professor (Catedratico) for Political Economy
.
, which has been attributed to him and the other Spanish technocrats, Ullastres has been counted among the "great economists". He studied the economic doctrines of the School of Salamanca of the 16th and 17th centuries, especially the doctrine of Juan de Mariana
and of Martín de Azpilcueta.
In an article The Awakening Land, Time Magazine attributes Spain's economic modernization to him: "On a hot July day in 1959, Ullastres announced a sweeping stabilization plan. Credit was tightened, the budget slashed, the peseta devalued to a realistic 60 to the dollar. With the aid of a $400 million international loan, Ullastres threw open Spain's doors to imports necessary to rebuild its economy. And over the howls of government protectionists, he pushed through a series of measures to encourage foreign investors to enter Spain. The success of the stabilization plan was miraculous. By 1963 Spain had $1.1 billion in foreign reserves and a booming economy."
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
's Minister of Economy (1957-1965) and Ambassador to the European Economic Community (1965-1976) under General Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
. He pushed forward the so called Plan of Stabilization which brought about Spain's transition from economic autarchy to liberalization and internationalization of the national economy, an economic success which has been called the Spanish miracle
Spanish miracle
The Spanish miracle was the name given to a broadly based economic boom in Spain from 1959 to 1974. The international oil and stagflation crises of the 1970s ended the boom.- The pre-boom situation :...
.
Life
He was born in MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
on 15 January 1914 and died in Madrid on 15 November 2001.
He studied Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
and Commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
. He obtained a doctorate in Law from the University of Madrid
Complutense University of Madrid
The Complutense University of Madrid is a university in Madrid, and one of the oldest universities in the world. It is located on a sprawling campus that occupies the entirety of the Ciudad Universitaria district of Madrid, with annexes in the district of Somosaguas in the neighboring city of...
. He was University Professor (Catedratico) for Political Economy
Political economy
Political economy originally was the term for studying production, buying, and selling, and their relations with law, custom, and government, as well as with the distribution of national income and wealth, including through the budget process. Political economy originated in moral philosophy...
.
Economic studies and work
Because of the so-called Spanish miracleSpanish miracle
The Spanish miracle was the name given to a broadly based economic boom in Spain from 1959 to 1974. The international oil and stagflation crises of the 1970s ended the boom.- The pre-boom situation :...
, which has been attributed to him and the other Spanish technocrats, Ullastres has been counted among the "great economists". He studied the economic doctrines of the School of Salamanca of the 16th and 17th centuries, especially the doctrine of Juan de Mariana
Juan de Mariana
Juan de Mariana, also known as Father Mariana , was a Spanish Jesuit priest, Scholastic, historian, and member of the Monarchomachs....
and of Martín de Azpilcueta.
In an article The Awakening Land, Time Magazine attributes Spain's economic modernization to him: "On a hot July day in 1959, Ullastres announced a sweeping stabilization plan. Credit was tightened, the budget slashed, the peseta devalued to a realistic 60 to the dollar. With the aid of a $400 million international loan, Ullastres threw open Spain's doors to imports necessary to rebuild its economy. And over the howls of government protectionists, he pushed through a series of measures to encourage foreign investors to enter Spain. The success of the stabilization plan was miraculous. By 1963 Spain had $1.1 billion in foreign reserves and a booming economy."