Editor's Note: This is an edited transcription of the general session of the January 1998 Pacific Rim Allied Economic Organizations 3rd Biennial Conference, held in Bangkok, Thailand. Copyright 1998 Western Economic Association International.

This paper examines the current path of global imbalances and the role of East Asia in addressing these issues. The roots of the problem are the exploding budget deficit and soaring current account deficit of the United States. The twin deficits are being financed by foreign savings including...

The currency crises that engulfed East Asian economies in 1997 and Mexico in 1994 - and their high development costs - raise a serious concern about the net benefits for developing countries of large flows of potentially reversible short-term international capital. Written by senior...