The creation of the Yugoslav state at the end of the First World War brought together the half-assimilated remains of several societies in various stages of development, each with centuries of rule by foreign powers. It was not until the Second World War when a fresh start was made under a new revolutionary regime that Yugoslavia made substantial economic headway and progressed from an underdeveloped country to a medium rank level of development.

First published in 1982, The Economy of Yugoslavia charts the progress of the Yugoslav economy over sixty years and demonstrates how it achieved rapid quantitative progress in the post-war period. The book also shows how Yugoslavia’s own brand of modified socialist planning succeeded in some areas but did not obviate many of the problems such as inflation and unemployment, which have been so familiar to western societies.

The great strength of the book is that it does not discuss the economy in isolation from the many non-economic factors which did so much to shape Yugoslavia’s society. This book will be of interest to students and researchers of history and economics.