Peter Kenen
Encyclopedia
Peter B. Kenen is a Senior Fellow in International Economics at the Council on Foreign Relations
and Walker Professor of Economics and International Finance at Princeton University
.
Kenen was born in Cleveland, Ohio
in 1932, and attended The Bronx High School of Science. He earned his B.A. from Columbia University
in 1954 and his Ph.D. from Harvard University
in 1958. He taught at Columbia from 1957 to 1971, where he served as Chairman of the Department of Economics and was named as Provost of the University. While at Columbia, Kenen was a resident of Teaneck, New Jersey
.
He was Director of the International Finance Section at Princeton from 1971 to 1999. He is best known for his work on the theory of optimum currency area
s, in which he argued that groups of countries with diversified domestic production are more likely to constitute optimum currency areas than groups whose members are highly specialized. He was one of the first to advocate floating exchange rate
s for small countries.
Kenen’s publications include British Monetary Policy and the Balance of Payments, which won the David A. Wells Prize at Harvard; Asset Markets, Exchange Rates and Economic Integration (with Polly Allen); The Theory of Optimum Currency Areas: An Eclectic View; Managing Exchange Rates; Economic and Monetary Union in Europe; The International Financial Architecture; and International Economic and Financial Cooperation (with Jeffrey Shafer, Nigel Wicks, and Charles Wyplosz). Recent publications include Regional Monetary Integration (with Ellen E. Meade), published in 2008 (Cambridge). He has edited several books, including Managing the World Economy and Understanding Interdependence, and was co editor of the two volume Handbook of International Economics. He has published numerous articles in scholarly journals, many of which have been reprinted in two volumes: Essays in International Economics and Exchange Rates and the Monetary System.
Kenen has been a consultant to the Council of Economic Advisers
, the Office of Management and Budget, the Federal Reserve, the International Monetary Fund
, and the United States Department of the Treasury
. He was a member of President Kennedy's
Task Force on Foreign Economic Policy, the Review Committee on Balance of Payments Statistics, and the Economic Advisory Panel of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York
. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
and the Group of Thirty
. He was President of the Eastern Economic Association in 2000-01.
He has held research fellowships from the Ford Foundation
, the Social Science Research Council
, and the German Marshall Fund
, and he has been a Fellow of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
, a Guggenheim Fellow, and Ford Research Professor at the University of California
. In 1983-84, he was a Professorial Fellow at the Australian National University; in 1987-88, he was a Visiting Fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs; in 1991-92, he held the Houblon-Norman Fellowship at the Bank of England
; and in 2002, he was Professorial Fellow at the Victoria University of Wellington
and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand
.
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
and Walker Professor of Economics and International Finance at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
.
Kenen was born in Cleveland, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
in 1932, and attended The Bronx High School of Science. He earned his B.A. from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1954 and his Ph.D. from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1958. He taught at Columbia from 1957 to 1971, where he served as Chairman of the Department of Economics and was named as Provost of the University. While at Columbia, Kenen was a resident of Teaneck, New Jersey
Teaneck, New Jersey
Teaneck is a township in Bergen County, New Jersey, and a suburb in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 39,776, making it the second-most populous among the 70 municipalities in Bergen County....
.
He was Director of the International Finance Section at Princeton from 1971 to 1999. He is best known for his work on the theory of optimum currency area
Optimum currency area
In economics, an optimum currency area , also known as an optimal currency region , is a geographical region in which it would maximize economic efficiency to have the entire region share a single currency. It describes the optimal characteristics for the merger of currencies or the creation of a...
s, in which he argued that groups of countries with diversified domestic production are more likely to constitute optimum currency areas than groups whose members are highly specialized. He was one of the first to advocate floating exchange rate
Floating exchange rate
A floating exchange rate or fluctuating exchange rate is a type of exchange rate regime wherein a currency's value is allowed to fluctuate according to the foreign exchange market. A currency that uses a floating exchange rate is known as a floating currency....
s for small countries.
Kenen’s publications include British Monetary Policy and the Balance of Payments, which won the David A. Wells Prize at Harvard; Asset Markets, Exchange Rates and Economic Integration (with Polly Allen); The Theory of Optimum Currency Areas: An Eclectic View; Managing Exchange Rates; Economic and Monetary Union in Europe; The International Financial Architecture; and International Economic and Financial Cooperation (with Jeffrey Shafer, Nigel Wicks, and Charles Wyplosz). Recent publications include Regional Monetary Integration (with Ellen E. Meade), published in 2008 (Cambridge). He has edited several books, including Managing the World Economy and Understanding Interdependence, and was co editor of the two volume Handbook of International Economics. He has published numerous articles in scholarly journals, many of which have been reprinted in two volumes: Essays in International Economics and Exchange Rates and the Monetary System.
Kenen has been a consultant to the Council of Economic Advisers
Council of Economic Advisers
The Council of Economic Advisers is an agency within the Executive Office of the President that advises the President of the United States on economic policy...
, the Office of Management and Budget, the Federal Reserve, the International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
, and the United States Department of the Treasury
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
. He was a member of President Kennedy's
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
Task Force on Foreign Economic Policy, the Review Committee on Balance of Payments Statistics, and the Economic Advisory Panel of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Federal Reserve Bank of New York
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York is one of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks of the United States. It is located at 33 Liberty Street, New York, NY. It is responsible for the Second District of the Federal Reserve System, which encompasses New York state, the 12 northern counties of New Jersey,...
. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
and the Group of Thirty
Group of Thirty
The Group of Thirty, often abbreviated to G30, is an international body of leading financiers and academics which aims to deepen understanding of economic and financial issues and to examine consequences of decisions made in the public and private sectors related to these issues...
. He was President of the Eastern Economic Association in 2000-01.
He has held research fellowships from the Ford Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
, the Social Science Research Council
Social Science Research Council
The Social Science Research Council is a U.S.-based independent nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing research in the social sciences and related disciplines...
, and the German Marshall Fund
German Marshall Fund
The German Marshall Fund of the United States is a nonpartisan American public policy and grantmaking institution dedicated to promoting greater cooperation and understanding between North America and Europe....
, and he has been a Fellow of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences is an American interdisciplinary research body in Stanford, California focusing on the social sciences and humanities . Fellows are elected in a closed process, to spend a period of residence at the Center, released from other duties...
, a Guggenheim Fellow, and Ford Research Professor at the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
. In 1983-84, he was a Professorial Fellow at the Australian National University; in 1987-88, he was a Visiting Fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs; in 1991-92, he held the Houblon-Norman Fellowship at the Bank of England
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694, it is the second oldest central bank in the world...
; and in 2002, he was Professorial Fellow at the Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a former constituent college of the University of New Zealand. It is particularly well known for its programmes in law, the humanities, and some scientific disciplines, but offers a broad range of other courses...
and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand
Reserve Bank of New Zealand
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is the central bank of New Zealand and is constituted under the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act 1989. The Governor of the Reserve Bank is responsible for New Zealand's currency and operating monetary policy. The Bank's current Governor is Dr. Alan Bollard...
.