Journal of Economic Perspectives
Interview with Anne O. Krueger
2025-08-14
Matthews interviews eminent international economist Anne O. Krueger, tracing her life in academia and her service at multilateral economic institutions, and explaining her myriad intellectual contributions to the field. Krueger recounts her early skepticism of import substitution, informed by her experiences in Turkey and India, culminating in her influential 1974 paper on rent-seeking. Krueger discusses her tenure at the World Bank in the 1980s and her time at the IMF in the 2000s, where she influenced the fund's response to the financial crisis in Argentina. She also explains her career-long interest in trade liberalization efforts, her concerns about the decline of the World Trade Organization and multilateral trade negotiations, and her skepticism about the United States' recent turn toward industrial policy. Krueger ends by reflecting on the evolution of the economics profession and offering advice for young economists.