We investigate the possibility that the large current account deficits of the U.S. are the outcome of optimizing behavior. We develop a simple long-run world equilibrium model in which the current account is determined by the expected discounted present value of its future share of world GDP...

The rising current account deficit in the USA has attracted considerable attention in recent years. We use the "business cycle accounting" methodology to identify the principal distortions that have affected the external accounts of the US. In particular, we measure distortions in the optimality...

This paper provides a quantitative investigation of the East Asian crisis of 1997-99. The two essential features of the crisis that we focus on are a) the crisis was a regional phenomenon; the depth and severity of the crisis was exacerbated by a large decline in regional demand, and b) the...