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countries devastated by war needed assistance in rebuild- ing. Leaders of the United States and its allies decided that a lasting peace could only be achieved through an interna- tional economic order. Unrestricted global trade, leading to economic prosperity for all, was identified as the way to bring nations together. In July 1944, just before the end of World War II, 730 representatives from forty-four nations met in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire. The meeting was officially called the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, but came to be known as the Bretton Woods Conference. Three important international financial institutions were established to guide the world through the postwar years: (1) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). (2) The Bretton Woods System, setting the gold stan- dard for currency values. (3) The International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IBRD was authorized to provide long-term loans to countries that had sustained physical and financial damage during the war. Infrastructure , such as roads, bridges, and power plants, had been damaged or destroyed. These coun- tries could not go forward without extensive construction projects and those projects would be expensive. The bank was funded by dues paid by member nations and loans were issued at interest rates lower than those available from com- mercial sources. IBRD, which later became part of the World Bank Group (www.worldbank.org), continued after

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