Heckscher, Eli Filip [key], 1879–1952, Swedish economic historian. Influenced by the neoclassical economics of Alfred Marshall, Heckscher advocated the use of monetary policy to combat inflation. His views were adopted by the Bank of Sweden in 1920. His best-known work, Mercantilism (tr. 1935), was the first modern synthesis of mercantile thought and practice. Heckscher saw the mercantile system as embodying the political and economic values of competitive young nation states, and he questioned the validity of mercantile theory. Other works include an outstanding economic history of Sweden (4 vol., 1935–49; tr. of abridged ed. 1954).
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