... a vast portion of the young and skilled workforce had died which twined with a lack of capital lead to a decrease in productivity. Agriculture was not too badly affected, indeed the only major problems in post war Britain were two harsh winters in 1948 and 1949. Although industry was destroyed, within four years the industrial economy had bounced back. The response of Western Europe to this bleak economic outlook was to set up organisations that would break down the old nationalistic barriers and help create a stable economic climate. These included organisations such as the United Nations (UN), the international monetary fund (IMF) and GATT. The purpose of the IMF was to establish an international monetary system that worked like the old gold standard but avoiding the negative trade affects of the inter-war competitive devaluations. The general agreement on trade and tariffs (GATT) objective was to promote international free ...

See this essay or coursework document in full right now