Asia

Along with commercial banks, capital markets are an integral part of the financial systems in most capitalist economies, and their relative importance is constantly increasing. Countries around the world are…

Central banks have two responsibilities: (1) stabilize the value of the currency and (2) maintain public confidence in deposit money by limiting systemic risk. The first responsibility is primary, ongoing,…

In the unfolding process of the Korean financial crisis in 1997, an inefficient corporate bankruptcy system played a damaging role in the Korean economy. Before the crisis, in 1996 and…

Although Korea has seen its economic growth rates come down from the stratospheric heights of previous decades, it remains, by any advanced-country yardstick, a successful economic performer. Korea’s real GDP…

In this episode, Korea Economic Institute’s Director of Communications Chad 0Carroll speaks with Scott Snyder of the Council on Foreign Relations. Having written a number of publications on U.S. relations…

In this episode, Korea Economic Institute’s Director of Public Affairs and Regional Issues Sarah Yun speaks with Dr. Andrei Lankov of Kookimin University. Having written a number of books on…

In this episode, new Korean Kontext presenter speaks with Curtis Melvin, the man behind the NK Econ Watch blog and developer of “North Korea Uncovered”, a Google Map overlay that…

In this episode, we speak with Kevin O’Donnell, who, after decades on a private sector career path, became the first-ever Peace Corps country director for South Korea, followed by a…

North Korea’s won has fallen in half against the US dollar since July for unclear reasons. An internal North Korean document collected by Daily NK blames perverse psychology for the trouble and warns that the won must be protected from further devaluation, suggesting high-level concerns of destabilizing inflation and a potential new banking crisis. The…

South Korea is facing some challenges as it integrates new digital technologies. A year ago, Seoul unveiled its “Digital Bill of Rights,” which seeks to preserve the rights and freedoms of Korean citizens online. But while it calls for building a “safe and trustworthy digital society,” this goal has been challenged by the rise of…

South Korea has found itself at the center of forward momentum on the international governance and deployment of artificial intelligence (AI). Korea was one of the first countries to develop a national AI strategy. It also co-hosted the 2024 AI Safety Summit and the second summit on Responsible AI in the Military Domain (REAIM) and…

Lawmakers from South Korea’s two major political parties have a notoriously difficult time agreeing on much of anything. However, one issue that enjoys bipartisan support is reforming the country’s espionage law, a proposal now under consideration in the National Assembly. The focus is on updating Article 98 of the Criminal Act as the legislation, in…