Economics

Though hesitant to officially join the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy, South Korea is seeking to promote many of the same values through the Moon administration’s “New Southern Policy.” Central to this…

This month, the world was reminded once again that the relationship between the Republic of Korea and Japan is deeply fractious. Japan has imposed restrictions on the export of chemical…

The North Korean economy is changing – we know this because of widely reported growth of private markets since the famine of 1990s. But black markets and illicit activities are…

Recently released data from the Department of Commerce confirmed that the United States achieved record-level export of services to South Korea in 2018 – $24.5 billion. Combined with the trade…

By Troy Stangarone At a recent international conference in Seoul, South Korean President Park Geun-hye called for a “Eurasia Initiative” to link Europe and Asia via trade, transit, and energy.  However, achieving President Park’s vision will require developing a means of integrating North Korea into the broader Eurasian framework and mitigating the risk of Pyongyang…

By Phil Eskeland Last week, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released a report[1] on the level of skills among adults in 24 developed countries, including the Republic of Korea and the United States.  There were several interesting analyses, comparing the skill level of adults in these nations based on age, education level,…

By Gerard Krzic Anyone visiting Korea and sightseeing at a rural Buddhist temple usually passes over a stone bridge that crosses a stream or river before entering the main temple grounds.  It has been said that the bridge represents crossing oceans as one moves from the land of daily hardships to the land of enlightenment…

By James W. Fatheree A recent KEI annual seminar provided the U.S. Chamber/U.S.-Korea Business Council (USKBC) with an opportunity to provide our perspective on the economic priorities of both the Obama and Park administrations--where these priorities line up and ways in which our governments and business communities can work together to support policies that foster…

As disruptions in supply chains continue, what practical steps can the U.S. and Korea take to strengthen supply chains against future crises?