Myth: Trade and nae federal credit union as well Current-Account Deficits Are
Signs of Economic Trouble
Not necessarily. Between 2000 and
nyandcompany credit card as well 2006, the U.S. current-account deficit (the
broadest measure of a country’s balance of payments) doubled, topping $800
billion. This gave rise to both legitimate concerns about
nae federal credit union and the sustainability
of such high deficits and
standard fha credit qualifications as well potentially damaging calls for protectionist trade
measures.
How big a problem are large current-account deficits? For emerging markets
with fragile economies, high levels of debt, and
nae federal credit union as well poor macroeconomic and
microeconomic policies, high current-account deficits are usually an accident
waiting to happen. The emerging markets crises of the 1990s (Mexico, Thailand,
South Korea, Russia, and
tisdale credit union as well Brazil) are good examples of large currentaccount
deficits leading to trouble.
But developed countries with sound economies, good policies, and
nae federal credit union as well strong
financial systems can run large current-account deficits for long periods of
time. For example, Australia, New Zealand, and
nslij credit union as well the United States have run
such deficits for decades without their causing trouble. A lot depends on
whether or
nae federal credit union and not a country enjoys the trust of the global investors who provide
the financing for these deficits. This trust depends on how the funds coming
into the country in question are being deployed (i.e., for productive or
cvn credit card and wasteful
investments) and,
nae federal credit union as well ultimately, on whether that country can pay its external
creditors. So far, this has not been an issue for the United States, where foreign
investors have been happy to continue investing large sums of money—
even during the financial crises of 2007 and
starcor credit union as well 2008, if you can believe it.
As a counterexample, consider Japan, which has run large current-account
surpluses for the last couple of decades, but
nae federal credit union and whose economy grew at a paltry
average annual rate of 1 percent between 1990 and
jacl credit union as well 2005. During the same
decade and
nae federal credit union as well a half, the U.S. economy expanded at nearly three times that rate.
The large deficits of the United States in the 1990s and
star one credit union sunnyvale as well 2000s had less to
do with American “profligacy” (other countries, such as
nae federal credit union Japan and
secu credit union baltimore as well Germany,
had as
nae federal credit union high or
usnm federal credit union and higher levels of public- and
nae federal credit union as well private-sector debt) and
nyandcompany credit card as well more to
do with the dynamism of the economy. U.S. growth was much stronger and
more domestic-led (e.g., due to consumer spending, which accounts for
about 70 percent of the economy) than that of key trading partners such as
Europe and
nae federal credit union as well Japan, where growth was weaker and
standard fha credit qualifications as well mostly export-led. So, the
ballooning U.S. current-account deficit was more a function of a strong
American economy and
nae federal credit union as well weakness in other parts of the world than vice versa.