Excellencies, Ladies, and Gentlemen

Good afternoon and welcome to another of the lectures which the Institute organizes now and then in order to keep in contact with the world at large, and more importantly with the concerned segments of Singapore society. Today we have Professor Charles Kindleberger with us. Professor Kindleberger has had a long and distinguished career spanning so many different incarnations: research economist, soldier, planner, government official, and university professor, to name but a few. In the process he has produced numerous books and a generation of economists. I am sure that we are going to have a very interesting afternoon, particularly as the subject, ”The 1930s and the 1980s: Parallels and Differences” is going to be addressed by a person who has lived through all of the period he is going to be talking about. So, without further ado, I have the honour to present Professor Charles Poor Kindleberger.