United States of America

On 1 April 2007 Korea and the United States finally completed their year-long negotiations to conclude the Korea- U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA), which was then signed by the…

President Lee Myung-bak won a landslide victory in 2007. His popularity before the election was obvious, and it came as a surprise to almost no one that he won by…

The world can only hope the recent U.S.-North Korean bilateral discussions will revive the six-power talks and lead to Pyongyang’s renunciation of its nuclear weapons ambitions. Hope, however, is not…

This paper builds on Kiyota and Stern (2007), in which we analyzed the economic effects of a U.S.-Korea free trade agreement (KORUSFTA). In Section II, we review the objectives and…

By Phil Eskeland Before boarding Marine One on the White House lawn on his way to Lima, Ohio, President Donald Trump once again dangled the possibility of imposing tariffs as high as 25 percent on imported motor vehicles and parts as a tool to pressure the European Union in trade talks.  His cajoling is made…

By William Brown New data shows North Korea’s imports of agricultural consumer goods from China, generally sold in markets, are holding up well in contrast to plummeting imports of investment goods procured by and for the state. This may be helping Kim control inflation and supports the won but carries ominous implications for the future…

By Phil Eskeland As we continue to examine the effect of the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA) on its 7th anniversary, one of the major sticking points in the negotiations was the treatment of various agricultural products.  Because South Korean tariffs on agricultural imports were very high (averaging 55.4 percent vs. 3.8 percent for…

By Yonho Kim North Korea threatened to suspend denuclearization talks with the United States about two weeks after the Hanoi summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un failed. North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui at a news conference in Pyongyang said that Kim was considering discontinuing the 15 month-long moratorium…

Please join KEI and KIEP for a discussion about the first 10 years of KORUS and the future of the U.S.-Korea economic relationship.