Can the growth in the U.S. current account deficit be sustained? How does the flow of deficits feed the stock of debt? And how will the burden of servicing this debt affect future deficits and economic growth? These are some of the questions we address in this Strategic Analysis

The real effective exchange rate of the dollar is close to its minimum level for the past 4 decades (as of September 2008). At the same time, however, the U.S. trade and current account deficits remain large and, absent a significant correction in coming years, would contribute to a further...

The Pessimists and the Optimists disagree whether the US external deficits and the associated buildup of US net foreign liabilities are problems that require urgent attention. A warning signal should be that the debt ratio deviates significantly from the optimal ratio. The optimal debt ratio or...