The reforms of the late 1990s also helped South Korea weather the global financial crisis. Despite a sudden stop in capital inflows and a precipitous fall in its currency in 2008, South Korea was able to avoid a larger crisis or a dramatic decline in output. And its recovery was swift: the International Monetary Fund forecasts that the country’s economy will grow by 3.7 percent in 2014 and by 3.0–3.5 percent a year over the long term.