Alas, but they lent to those with very uncertain prospects, and in March of 2000, the chain of leverage started to collapse, both for vendors, and for those that worked in the industries.
Today, with growth prospects still veryuncertain and interest rates too low to be of use, a temporary VAT cut now is still the right prescription before extra capital spending can come on stream — although any immediate tax cut which helps middle and lower income families is better than nothing.