After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

• Define capitalism and identify its major features.
• Describe the historical development of the modern economic system and explain the key concepts of liberalism, mercantilism, comparative advantage, and hegemon.
• Understand the Bretton Woods System and identify its major features.
• Understand the post-Bretton Woods economic system and explain the role of neoliberalism within it.
• Define dependency theory and explain its role.
• Identify the group of post-communist countries that are developing most rapidly and describe the factors contributing to their growth.
• Identify the key economic actors today and describe the trends they are affected by and that they themselves affect.