In a speech on 'A Perspective on U.S. International Capital Flows' given on 14 November, William Poole of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis said the forces driving the U.S. capital account represent a persistent, but ultimately temporary, process that might result in a higher level of net indebtedness without necessarily posing any threat to the sustainability of the U.S. international investment position. Nor will the transition to a sustainable long-run path necessarily require wrenching