Beginning of Essay
A large economic downturn in East Asia threatens to end its nearly 30 year run of high growth rates. The crisis has caused Asian currencies to fall 50-60%, stock markets to decline 40%, banks to close, and property values to drop. The crisis was brought on by curr ....

Middle of Essay
.... fell soon after when the rupiah hit a record low against the U.S. dollar. Indonesia is plagued by more than $70 billion worth of bad debts and a corrupt and inefficient government. Thailand and Indonesia also suffer from being overbuilt during real estate booms that Reven2 were the result of huge influxes of cash by optimistic foreign investors. South Korea faltered under the weight of its huge foreign debt, decreasing exports, and weakening currency (Lochhead 4-5). Other major countries touched by the crisis are Japan, China, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Japan’s economy is burdened by $300 billion in bad bank loans and a recession. Chinese ba ....