EAST-ASIAN ECONOMICS - THE CRISIS OF 1997-98

This is the author's second essay in a series on the east Asian econom ies and deals with the still unfolding crisis in the region. It starte d as a confidence crisis translating into a currency crisis in Thailan d and spread to Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines. Via the exposure to these economies, Singapore too was affected somewh at while Hong Kong and Taiwan have escaped more or less unhurt. What s tarted as a confidence-cum-currency crisis, in time became a financial crisis in most economies and a full-scale economic crisis in some. In cases like Indonesia, the next stages of the crisis series - social a nd political crises - were in full play. This essay is a comprehensive account of the east Asian crisis and includes discussions on the back ground, explanations of causes, country briefs, IMF bailouts and the f uture of the affected economies.