The question seems moot in the current climate. The Asian economic boom shows no sign of abating, current accounts are mostly in substantial surplus, and the majority of governments have bolstered their external positions with unprecedented reserves. At the same time, Asian companies have reduced their foreign currency debt exposures or hedged against exchange risk, and many banking systems have regained the economic role they played before the crisis.
Certainly vulnerability to a 1997-style financial crisis in the region is much reduced, and Standard PoorÆs own recent stress tests suggest that banking sectors and governments would cope with most conceivable economic shock...
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