They say that East Asian companies are unusual for their high debt/equity ratios. Which keep stockholders hands off and finance large-scale production and exports not for immediate profit but for market share. There's a little evidence that this is changing somewhat in Japan and Korea. Now there's evidence that US companies are beginning to imitate their mercantilist-minded East Asian comrade competitors, with their growing debt/equity ratio following from buybacks and takeovers. Jim O'Connor