Asia

Abe Shinzo is the longest-serving prime minister in post-World War II Japan. Having occupied the office since December 2012, Abe has attempted to leverage his stable tenure to increase Japan’s…

While President Moon Jae-in has a calmer demeanor than his mentor and friend, former President Roh Moo-hyun, there can be no doubt that his vision for transforming Northeast Asia is…

“Hindu nationalism risks pushing India into war with China,” blared the headline from China’s nationalist tabloid, Global Times. Meanwhile, in Washington, a wide-ranging network of analysts optimistic on U.S.-India ties…

U.S. views of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have been hardening for at least two decades, from George W. Bush characterizing China in the 2000 presidential campaign and the…

Not everyone in Korea or foreigners abroad want to hear about national advertising initiatives that focus on mainstream issues like K-Pop, Hallyu or ancient Korean Kimchi culture. Instead, many want…

On January 11, 2013, the Korea Economic Institute of America recently led Washington DC’s celebration of Korean American Day by hosting a luncheon event to honor two Korean Americans for…

With North Korea announcing to the world that it will be attempting to launch a second satellite for 2012, many analysts have been speculating as to why Pyongyang is so…

In this episode we spoke to The Economist’s South Korea correspondent, Daniel Tudor. Having been based in Korea for over a decade, Tudor has just finished writing one of the…

By Nicholas Hamisevicz U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a historic visit to Burma last week to assess some of the reforms undertaken by the regime.  During her trip, she rightfully insisted that one of the changes the Burmese government must enact is to end its illicit activities with North Korea.  Korea watchers need…

By Troy Stangarone Years ago, The Economist developed the Big Mac Index to track how much a MacDonald’s Big Mac cost in countries around the world. The idea was to provide an understandable measure for purchasing power parity across countries since the Big Mac is a basic commodity that has spread across the world. Of…

By Nicholas Hamisevicz A new report with satellite images shows North Korea’s progress constructing a new light water reactor at Yongbyon. The North Koreans revealed the facility to Ambassador Jack Pritchard, KEI’s President, and in subsequent weeks, Dr. Siegfried Hecker of Stanford University in November 2010. Dr. Hecker in his trip report expressed his surprise…

By Troy Stangarone Despite the financial crisis of 2008, the global downturn that followed in 2009, and a year of tension between North and South Korea, the Kaesong Industrial Complex has been remarkably resilient. New numbers from the Ministry of Unification show that production at the complex was up 38 percent in September from a…