Shortly after he took office in 1993, President Clinton traveled to Silicon Valley to lay out his vision of a robust American economy buoyed by high-technology companies that could compete anywhere in the world.

The latest International Monetary Fund report on the country predicted that an economy buoyed by the cease-fire would grow 3.5 to 4 percent by year's end.

Today's Columns Most economists foresee no recession in the next few years, even after seven straight years of economic expansion, One reason is that the United States has become an "open economy," buoyed by inflows of foreign capital.

Since many of these new leaders are not engaging in systematic reform, it is likely that voters will hold them to account should their economies - now buoyed by the forces of globalization, through rising exports and foreign investment - start to sag.

And with the economy buoyed by profits from soaring oil prices, it may be easier to push otherwise painful reforms through the Parliament.

At times England enjoyed huge military success, with the economy buoyed by profits from the international wool and cloth trade, but by 1450 the country was in crisis, facing military failure in France and an ongoing recession.

With the economy buoyed by high oil prices, Mr. Chávez steered Venezuela through a period that saw inflation fall and foreign reserves increase, to almost $20 billion.

Convincing the Russian government of that is, however, another task altogether as foreign investment continues to flow into the rapidly growing economy, buoyed by rising energy prices.

During the 1980's, with the city's economy buoyed by the boom in financial services and real estate, there seemed to be little need for strategic thinking in other sectors.

Businesses cannot thrive in an economy falsely buoyed by temporary stimulus jobs and taxpayer-funded bailouts, and we cannot afford to continue these expensive stimulus programs.