Beginning in 1999, the ASEAN-5 began a ten-year spurt of 5% average annual GDP growth (5.5% in South Korea over the same period). In short, there were no lasting negative effects from the short-term dose of austerity, and, to the extent that austerity was essential to post-crisis healing, the long-term benefits have proven to be both enduring and astounding.
从那以后，各国就走上了一条康庄大道。在两年之内，亚洲大多数受灾经济体都重新恢复到了危机前水平，而且都不是临时性的回光返照。自1999年始，东盟五国经历了GDP年平均增长率达5%的十年（韩国则达到了5.5%）。简而言之，这种短期的紧缩行为并不会导致长期性的负面效应，而且紧缩在某种程度上是灾后复原所必不可少的，事实证明，其带来的长期好处不仅持久，而且令人震惊。