Third Quarter, Volume 1, Number 3

Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
EconSouth

In This Issue

STAFF

Pierce Nelson
Editorial Director

Lynn Foley
Managing Editor

Jean Tate
Lee Underwood
Staff Writers

Carole Starkey
Kristin Shelton
Designers

EDITORIAL COMMITTEE

Bobbie H. McCrackin
Vice President and
Public Affairs Officer

B. Frank King
   Vice President and
   Associate Director
   of Research

Thomas J. Cunningham
   Vice President
   Research Department
   Regional Section

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ISSN 0899-6571

Photography for the cover,
"Downtown Revitalization" and
the first page of "The Score
on Credit Scoring" by
Ron Sherman

Volume 1, Number 3, Third Quarter 1999
		CURRENT ISSUE Some Benefits of Credit Scoring Begin to Surface

		COVER STORY Downtown Revitalization: Cities Search for Solutions During the past three decades, numerous Southeastern cities have implemented downtown revitalization projects. While these projects have experienced mixed success, cities throughout the region continue to use both public and private funds as they pursue successful solutions to rejuvenate their downtown districts.

		FEATURES The Score on Credit Scoring In Small Business Lending As credit scoring has been applied to small business lending during the 1990s, some groups claim that the scoring process discriminates against certain segments of the population seeking those loans. A recent study by three Atlanta Fed researchers, however, found that, among other things, credit scoring might actually help small business owners in low- and moderate-income areas get loans.
		Is the International Economic Crisis Over? Two years ago, Asian economies began to feel the impact of a full-blown financial crisis sparked by a currency and financial crisis in Thailand. That crisis soon spread to other emerging economies in Russia and Latin America. In this issue of EconSouth, the Atlanta Fed's Latin America Research Group looks at how these economies have managed during the crisis and whether the international economic crisis is in fact over.

		DEPARTMENTS Research Notes Dollar Index The State of the States Southeastern Economic Indicators Southeastern Manufacturing Survey