Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Until very recently it was assumed that the Asian miracle of prodigious economic growth would continue indefinitely. Europe and America, it seemed, were being left behind. The recent financial crisis in Asia has now changed all that.
François Godement provides a broad-ranging survey of the regions economies since 1993 and explains the main reasons behind the recent financial crisis. He also examines important factors such as demography, Asian values, crony capitalism, industrial groupings and the wane of political authority.
The Asian miracle has not come to an end, but the author makes clear that improved self-regulation and discipline within the financial sector will be crucial if the economies of the region are to weather the uncertainties of the marketplace in the future and realize their full potential.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Acknowledgements (p. vi)
• 1 Introduction (p. 1)
• 2 An Explanation of the 1997 Asian Crash (p. 20)
• 3 Asia, Meet the Rescue Party (p. 61)
• 4 Asian Values, Minus the Debate (p. 96)
• 5 The Challenge to Asian Identity (p. 124)
• 6 Challenging Asian Politics (p. 151)
• 7 A Faustian Deal for Asia? (p. 179)
• 8 Conclusion (p. 201)
• Notes (p. 217)
• References (p. 231)
• Index (p. 236)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Booklist Review

Godement is a senior research associate for the Paris-based Institute Francais des Relations Internationales and the author of The New Asian Renaissance: From Colonialism to the Post^-Cold War (1997). Impressive in its scope, this book was a profile of the political evolution of modern Asia. This time the focus is narrower: an analysis the Asian economy during the most recent decade. Godement concludes that Asia's current economic woes are the result of a "crisis of maturity." Asia's social and political infrastructures are sound, but a sense of pessimism dampens an immediate recovery. Godement also stresses that an unprecedented degree of cooperation among Asian nations will be necessary before the region fully rebounds. He provides an overview of events leading up to the 1997 Asian crash, blaming attempts by Asian economies to emulate the Western model of international trade and financial liberalization without having adequate regulation in place. He calls on the West to establish an International Resolution Trust Corporation to help liquidate Asian debts. The alternative, he warns, is a second, more destabilizing crash. --David Rouse