TheEconomyofUKThecontentsEnglishcurrency:BriefIntroductionoftheEconomyofUKG8：theOrganizationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopment西方七国首脑会议最初以讨论经济问题为宗旨，故也称“七国经济最高级会议”。从１９７５年至１９７９年的前５次会议都是以经济问题为主要议题，讨论了诸如失业、通货膨胀、能源和贸易等问题，协调了成员国的宏观经济政策和成员国之间的经济关系。但从８０年代初开始，各国间经济矛盾加剧，经济方面的协议常常难以取得有效的结果，加之国际形势的变化和发展，政治问题也逐渐成为会议的重要议题。１９９１年苏联总统戈尔巴乔夫，１９９２年和１９９３年俄罗斯总统叶利钦都应邀同与会的七国首脑在会后举行会晤。１９９４年第２０次会议时，叶利钦正式参加政治问题讨论，形成了“７＋１”机制。１９９７年在美国丹佛举行七国首脑会议时，克林顿总统作为东道主邀请叶利钦以正式与会者的身份“自始至终”参加会议，并首次与七国集团首脑以“八国首脑会议”的名义共同发表“最后公报”。从此，延续了２３年的“西方七国首脑会议”演化为“八国首脑会议”（也被称为“八国集团”），“７＋１”的模式结束，八国首脑会议体制形成。不过，在经济问题上依然保持七国体制。EuropeanUnionAbsoluteDeclineandRelativeDeclinecontinuescontinuescontinuesb.BritishcoloniesgainedindependenceTheeraofempirewasover.India,popularlyknownas“ThejewelintheCrown”oftheBritishEmpire,gaineditsindependencein1947,only2yearsaftertheendofthewar.Thiswasthelargestelementintheempire,providingrawmaterialsandabigmarketforBritishgoods.ThisrelationshipwithIndiawasnolongeravailable,andtherestoftheempirequicklyfollowedIndiatoindependence,leavingBritainasjustamedium-sizeEuropeancountry,withapopulationonlyonefifththesizeoftheUS.c.BritainwasheavilyburdenedwiththehugemilitaryexpenditureDespitetherelativelyrapidandtrouble-freeprocessofdecolonisation,Britainwasstillforcedtomaintainasubstantialandexpensivemilitarypresenceinmanyoverseaslocationsuntiltheprocesswascompleted(mostlybytheendofthe1960s).Alsoitspositionasoneoftheshapersofthepost-warworldrequiredsubstantialmilitarycontributions---bothasoneofNATO’smajorpartners,andasamemberoftheUNSecurityCouncil.AllthishadtheresultthatBritainspentahigherproportionofitsnationalwealth(andespeciallyofitsresearchanddevelopmentbudget)onthemilitarythanmostofitscompetitors.d.BritainalsolackedtheinvestmentinmodernequipmentandnewproductsAlthoughBritainwasquitebadlydamagedbyGermanbombingduringthewar,itsindustrysurvivedcomparativelyunaffected.Thiscontrastedgreatlywithsomeofitscompetitors---especiallythemainlosersintheconflict,GermanyandJapan,whoalmosthadtostrartagainfromnothing