Mark Thirlwell

Former Director, International Economy Program & Fellow, G20 Studies Centre
Areas of expertise
Global economy / global economic trends; globalisation; rise of new economic powers; geo-economics; global economic governance (G-20)
Mark Thirlwell
Biography
Publications

One of Australia’s leading commentators on the international economy, Mark has been tracking global economic trends since he joined the Bank of England’s International Divisions in 1990 where he worked as part of the Whitehall Economists Subgroup, coordinating the forecasting of major emerging markets across the Bank, Treasury, the FCO and other stakeholders. Mark subsequently joined J P Morgan as a Vice President in Economic Research with responsibility for Central Europe. Before joining Lowy, he served as Senior Economist at Australia’s Export Finance and Insurance Corporation, working on sovereign risk with a particular focus on East Asia. Mark’s work at Lowy concentrated on the forces shaping globalisation. He has written major papers on the Indian economy, the state of the international trading system and the future of globalisation. Recent work has included publications on the post-crisis world economy, geo-economics and global governance, with the latter including participation in Think-20. Mark has degrees in economics from Cambridge and Oxford Universities and a postgraduate qualification in applied finance from Macquarie University.

Why Australia trembles as America teeters on the brink
Commentary
Why Australia trembles as America teeters on the brink
In an opinion piece in The Age, Mark Thirwell discusses the last-minute negotiations to prevent the US economy from plunging lemming-like over the so-called fiscal cliff and back…
National perspectives on global leadership during the Los Cabos G20 Summit
Analyses
National perspectives on global leadership during the Los Cabos G20 Summit
International Economy Program Director Mark Thirlwell is a contributor to a CIGI-Brookings Institution project on National Perspectives on Global Leadership.  The seventh…
The Eurozone bad bets: a beginner guide to the Eurozone crisis
Analyses
The Eurozone bad bets: a beginner guide to the Eurozone crisis
In this new Working Paper, Mark Thirlwell provides a beginner’s guide to the Eurozone crisis. Mark Thirlwell
From the Fall of the Wall to the Fall of the Banks and beyond: three persistent problems for the global economy
Analyses
From the Fall of the Wall to the Fall of the Banks and beyond: three persistent problems for the global economy
In this 2010 working paper, Mark Thirlwell looks at the changing shape of a global economy that was born with the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. Mark Thirlwell
The spectre of Malthus
Analyses
The spectre of Malthus
In this 2009 Lowy Institute working paper, Mark Thirlwell looks at some initial lessons from the 2007-2008 crisis about living in a resource-constrained world. A revised version…
The world economy, Murphy's law and Finagle's corollary
Analyses
The world economy, Murphy's law and Finagle's corollary
Over the second half of 2011, the world economy seemed to be sliding inexorably towards another major financial crisis. In the event, actions by an aggressive European Central…
A G-20 caucus for East Asia
Policy Briefs
A G-20 caucus for East Asia
In September 2009, the Pittsburgh Summit designated the G-20 as the world’s premier forum for international cooperation. The G-20 gives East Asia a significant presence at the top…
Message to the G20: Defeating protectionism begins at home
Policy Briefs
Message to the G20: Defeating protectionism begins at home
On 16 November last year, G20 leaders made a commitment to resist protectionism. According to the World Bank, by the end of February 2009, seventeen of the twenty had already …
After Doha: the search for Plan B
Analyses
After Doha: the search for Plan B
The Doha round of world trade talks has collapsed. After the negotiations were suspended back in July 2006, Mark Thirlwell wrote that – regardless of the ultimate outcome of the…
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