From $10b to $680b: S. Korea’s glory road to export-driven prosperity

In 1977, a little over two decades after the war that hardened the division of the peninsula ended, South Korea celebrated an economic milestone with much fanfare: $10 billion in yearly export volume. It had been just a year since the country had stopped receiving US aid worth a colossal $12.6 billion from 1946 through 1976, which helped rebuild whatever modern infrastructure there had been here before the war, and put the fragile economy on solid footing. “Our achievement of $10 billion e

Why Korea is pushing hard for WGBI inclusion

After years of revamping market policies, Korea likely to join global sovereign bond index in September

At S. Korea-US summit, extended deterrence upgrade should be top priority

Ex-ambassador to US Ahn Ho-young says Seoul must enhance its own defense capabilities, not just rely on the US

UN envoy slams China, Russia for NK falsehoods

Joint efforts by South Korea and the US for North Korea’s denuclearization have been disrupted in part by China and Russia -- the North’s supporters who “wrongly blame” the South and the US for little headway, according to South Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations. At a press briefing Wednesday held on the sidelines of an annual meeting meant to update the foreign minister on the latest issues, Hwang Joon-kook, the envoy, said Seoul has to fight back against th

2024 budget to boost defense, welfare spending

Government will refrain from cash handouts, Yoon says

[From the scene] Hype vs. reality of Apple Pay in Seoul

Despite the charm of its newness, many users complain about the lack of NFC readers in stores

The global banking crisis and world economy

By Jeffrey D. Sachs The banking crisis that hit Silicon Valley Bank at the beginning of March has now spread rapidly and widely. We recall with a shudder two recent financial contagions: the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, which led to a deep Asian recession, and the 2008 Great Recession, which led to a global downturn. The new banking crisis hits a world economy already disrupted by the pandemic, the Ukraine War, Western sanctions on Russia, US-China tensions, and climate shocks. At the root of