As we have mentioned on several occasions in these pages, when a boom nears its end, one often sees a sudden scramble for capital. This happens when investors and companies that have invested in large-scale long-term projects in the higher stages of the production structure suddenly realize that capital may not be as plentiful as they have previously assumed. The wake-up call usually involves a surge in market interest rates and subtle shifts in relative prices in the economy (consider for instance the recent decline in new home prices amid declining sales).
