Credit could also be directed to large-scale businesses that can demonstrate their ability to promote significant increases in employment relative totheirtotal spending. At a time when economists were seeking to explain the rapid growth of East Asian economies, Amsden (2001) identified the importance of central bank mechanisms that promote medium- and long-term investment in late industrializing countries, supported by central bank policy tools to achieve this goal. Credit allocation policies were extensively adopted, and included selective credit targeted to strategic sectors and support for specialized credit institutions to meet diverse credit needs.