Explain the goals and outcomes of the New Deal policies implemented by FDR during the Great Depression.

Summary: How Roosevelt’s New Deal Reshaped American Finance and Trade Policy When the financial markets crashed in 1929, America’s faith in the banking system evaporated almost overnight. Roosevelt’s New Deal wasn’t just about job programs—it completely rewired the country’s approach to financial regulation, monetary policy, and international trade. This article digs into the financial side of the New Deal, showing how it aimed to restore confidence, regulate Wall Street, and redefine America’s global economic role. Using real laws, agency records, and some firsthand anecdotes, I’ll walk through what changed, why it mattered, and how some of those tensions still show up today, especially in international trade standards. How the New Deal Tackled Financial Chaos: My Crash-Course in History A couple of years ago, I tried to reconstruct a 1930s-style portfolio as a personal project (don’t ask—it got weird), and I kept running into roadblocks that led straight back to New Deal reforms. For instance, when I tried to short stocks using margin, I realized the rules that made this tricky today started with the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. So, what exactly did Roosevelt’s team do to address the financial mess? Here’s what I found after wading through a mountain of old reports, Federal Reserve archives, and some surprisingly lively forum debates among amateur historians. Restoring Trust in Banks: The Glass-Steagall Act Before 1933, banks were a wild mix of deposit-taking and speculative investment. When banks failed, depositors lost everything. Roosevelt’s New Deal split commercial and investment banking via the Glass-Steagall Act (FDIC historical timeline), and—crucially—created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), so ordinary savers wouldn’t lose their shirts. The FDIC still backs up to $250,000 per account today. When I visited a local bank for a research project, the manager told me, “We literally put FDIC stickers everywhere—people still ask if their money is safe, 90 years later.” Regulating Wall Street: The Securities Acts The Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 forced companies to disclose financial information and established the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC official site). I once tried to dig up a 1920s railroad company’s financials for a class project—good luck! Post-New Deal, annual 10-Ks and quarterly 10-Qs are required, making it possible for analysts and regular investors to actually know what’s going on. Stabilizing the Currency: Leaving the Gold Standard One of Roosevelt’s boldest financial moves was taking the U.S. off the gold standard in 1933. This allowed the Federal Reserve to expand the money supply, fight deflation, and support government borrowing for recovery programs. The change is documented in the Federal Reserve’s history of the gold standard. The impact? It gave the government—and markets—room to breathe. International Trade and Tariff Reform The New Deal also tackled trade. The Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act of 1934 let the president negotiate lower tariffs with foreign governments, aiming to reverse the protectionist spiral that followed the Smoot-Hawley Act. WTO analysis (WTO research forum) credits this as a turning point toward modern trade liberalization. A Real-World Case: U.S.-U.K. Banking Regulation Post-New Deal Not long ago, I joined an online roundtable with compliance officers from U.S. and U.K. banks. One British expert quipped, “Your Glass-Steagall was like a sledgehammer—we use scalpels over here.” It’s true: the U.K. didn’t fully separate commercial and investment banking until after the 2008 crisis, long after the U.S. did it in the 1930s. These differences led to real headaches for multinational banks. For example, after the New Deal, a British bank operating in New York had to split its operations entirely, while in London it could keep everything under one roof. The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority and U.S. FDIC still grapple with these legacy rules today. Comparing “Verified Trade” Standards: A Quick Table Country/Org Standard Name Legal Basis Enforcement Body Notes USA Tariff Act, Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act Public Law 316 (1934) USTR, USITC Bilateral negotiation focus EU Union Customs Code, Mutual Recognition EU Regulation 952/2013 European Commission Standardized for all member states China Customs Law, CCC Certification Customs Law (2017) GACC State-driven compliance WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation WTO TFA WTO Secretariat Minimum global standards Expert Take: The New Deal’s Lasting Shadow on Modern Policy I once heard a former USTR negotiator say, “Every time we sit down at the WTO, we’re still arguing about the fallout from Smoot-Hawley and the New Deal’s response.” That’s not an exaggeration. The New Deal’s approach—actively negotiating trade agreements, regulating capital flows, and prioritizing domestic stability—still influences how the U.S. approaches both finance and global trade. If you check the USTR’s current policy statements, you’ll see echoes of this: every free trade negotiation is framed in terms of protecting U.S. jobs and financial stability. Meanwhile, the EU’s approach is more about harmonizing standards, and China’s is about state oversight. Conclusion: The New Deal’s Financial Blueprint—Still Relevant, Still Debated Looking back, the New Deal did far more than patch a broken economy—it rewired America’s financial system and set new global norms for trade and regulation. As someone who’s tried to trace financial rules back to their roots (and occasionally cursed the complexity), I can say the outcomes are still with us in every bank deposit, securities filing, and cross-border trade negotiation. My suggestion? If you’re in finance or trade, spend an afternoon with the original New Deal laws and the latest OECD or WTO reports (OECD trade research). You’ll spot patterns and arguments that haven’t changed in nearly a century. And if you ever mess up a margin calculation, just remember: at least your bank account is FDIC insured, and you can thank Roosevelt for that.

Una's answer to: What were the main objectives of the New Deal?

Summary: How Roosevelt’s New Deal Reshaped American Finance and Trade Policy

When the financial markets crashed in 1929, America’s faith in the banking system evaporated almost overnight. Roosevelt’s New Deal wasn’t just about job programs—it completely rewired the country’s approach to financial regulation, monetary policy, and international trade. This article digs into the financial side of the New Deal, showing how it aimed to restore confidence, regulate Wall Street, and redefine America’s global economic role. Using real laws, agency records, and some firsthand anecdotes, I’ll walk through what changed, why it mattered, and how some of those tensions still show up today, especially in international trade standards.

How the New Deal Tackled Financial Chaos: My Crash-Course in History

A couple of years ago, I tried to reconstruct a 1930s-style portfolio as a personal project (don’t ask—it got weird), and I kept running into roadblocks that led straight back to New Deal reforms. For instance, when I tried to short stocks using margin, I realized the rules that made this tricky today started with the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. So, what exactly did Roosevelt’s team do to address the financial mess? Here’s what I found after wading through a mountain of old reports, Federal Reserve archives, and some surprisingly lively forum debates among amateur historians.

Restoring Trust in Banks: The Glass-Steagall Act
Before 1933, banks were a wild mix of deposit-taking and speculative investment. When banks failed, depositors lost everything. Roosevelt’s New Deal split commercial and investment banking via the Glass-Steagall Act (FDIC historical timeline), and—crucially—created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), so ordinary savers wouldn’t lose their shirts. The FDIC still backs up to $250,000 per account today. When I visited a local bank for a research project, the manager told me, “We literally put FDIC stickers everywhere—people still ask if their money is safe, 90 years later.”
Regulating Wall Street: The Securities Acts
The Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 forced companies to disclose financial information and established the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC official site). I once tried to dig up a 1920s railroad company’s financials for a class project—good luck! Post-New Deal, annual 10-Ks and quarterly 10-Qs are required, making it possible for analysts and regular investors to actually know what’s going on.
Stabilizing the Currency: Leaving the Gold Standard
One of Roosevelt’s boldest financial moves was taking the U.S. off the gold standard in 1933. This allowed the Federal Reserve to expand the money supply, fight deflation, and support government borrowing for recovery programs. The change is documented in the Federal Reserve’s history of the gold standard. The impact? It gave the government—and markets—room to breathe.
International Trade and Tariff Reform
The New Deal also tackled trade. The Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act of 1934 let the president negotiate lower tariffs with foreign governments, aiming to reverse the protectionist spiral that followed the Smoot-Hawley Act. WTO analysis (WTO research forum) credits this as a turning point toward modern trade liberalization.

A Real-World Case: U.S.-U.K. Banking Regulation Post-New Deal

Not long ago, I joined an online roundtable with compliance officers from U.S. and U.K. banks. One British expert quipped, “Your Glass-Steagall was like a sledgehammer—we use scalpels over here.” It’s true: the U.K. didn’t fully separate commercial and investment banking until after the 2008 crisis, long after the U.S. did it in the 1930s. These differences led to real headaches for multinational banks. For example, after the New Deal, a British bank operating in New York had to split its operations entirely, while in London it could keep everything under one roof. The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority and U.S. FDIC still grapple with these legacy rules today.

Comparing “Verified Trade” Standards: A Quick Table

Country/Org	Standard Name	Legal Basis	Enforcement Body	Notes
USA	Tariff Act, Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act	Public Law 316 (1934)	USTR, USITC	Bilateral negotiation focus
EU	Union Customs Code, Mutual Recognition	EU Regulation 952/2013	European Commission	Standardized for all member states
China	Customs Law, CCC Certification	Customs Law (2017)	GACC	State-driven compliance
WTO	Agreement on Trade Facilitation	WTO TFA	WTO Secretariat	Minimum global standards

Expert Take: The New Deal’s Lasting Shadow on Modern Policy

I once heard a former USTR negotiator say, “Every time we sit down at the WTO, we’re still arguing about the fallout from Smoot-Hawley and the New Deal’s response.” That’s not an exaggeration. The New Deal’s approach—actively negotiating trade agreements, regulating capital flows, and prioritizing domestic stability—still influences how the U.S. approaches both finance and global trade.

If you check the USTR’s current policy statements, you’ll see echoes of this: every free trade negotiation is framed in terms of protecting U.S. jobs and financial stability. Meanwhile, the EU’s approach is more about harmonizing standards, and China’s is about state oversight.

Conclusion: The New Deal’s Financial Blueprint—Still Relevant, Still Debated

Looking back, the New Deal did far more than patch a broken economy—it rewired America’s financial system and set new global norms for trade and regulation. As someone who’s tried to trace financial rules back to their roots (and occasionally cursed the complexity), I can say the outcomes are still with us in every bank deposit, securities filing, and cross-border trade negotiation.

My suggestion? If you’re in finance or trade, spend an afternoon with the original New Deal laws and the latest OECD or WTO reports (OECD trade research). You’ll spot patterns and arguments that haven’t changed in nearly a century. And if you ever mess up a margin calculation, just remember: at least your bank account is FDIC insured, and you can thank Roosevelt for that.