The ratio of short term foreign debt to reserves hit 1.7 in Mexico and 1.3 in Argentina in June 1994. The pattern also
held for Russia in mid-1998, when it faced intense balance of payments pressures. In the case of
Brazil, the data show that in June 1998, its reserves slightly exceeded its short-term debt.
However, by late September, Brazil=s reserves had dwindled to $45 billion, below the level of its
short-term debt, and the real was under intense attack.