Extractive Capitalism : How Commodities and Cronyism Drive the Global Economy

An eye-opening survey of how extractive industries power globalisation - and how to fight back

Whether it's pumping oil, mining resources or shipping commodities across oceans, the global economy runs on extraction. Promises of frictionless trade and lucrative speculation are the hallmarks of our era, but the backbone of globalisation is still low-cost labour and rapacious corporate control. Extractive capitalism is what made - and is still making - our unequal world.

Professor Laleh Khalili reflects on the hidden stories behind late capitalism, from seafarers abandoned on debt-ridden container ships to the nefarious reach of consultancy firms and the cronyism that drives record-breaking profits. Piercing, wry and constantly revealing, Extractive Capitalism brings vividly to light the dark truths behind the world's most voracious industries.

Laleh Khalili is Professor of Gulf Studies at the University of Exeter. An expert on transnational politics, she has written widely on globalisation, capital and neo-colonialism, and has worked as a consultant and an engineer. Her recent books include Sinews of War and Trade and The Corporeal Life of Seafarers.