The 1997 Indonesian financial crisis was a period of economic turmoil that began in Indonesia in July 1997 and spread throughout East Asia and the Pacific. It was the most severe East Asian crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s.
The crisis began to take shape in May 1997, when the rupiah, Indonesia’s currency, began to decline in value. In July, the rupiah dropped to its lowest level ever against the U.S. dollar. The crisis intensified in August, when …