Monetary policy case study: South Korea vs Japan

The picture may be four years old, but it does a great job of showing the South-Korean eagerness to take Japan`s place as high-end apparel exporter. While most of the eyes focus on the miraculous growth story of China, the economic power of South Korean business conglomerates (formally called chaebols) is ever-increasing at the expense of their Japanese counterparts (named keiretsu). This is because South Korean companies have a fortunate advantage in the relative weakness of their national currency.

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il dies

It has not been a very good year for dictators. In 2011 we saw the fall of the Libian dictator Muammar Gaddafi, the so-called President of Tunisia Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and  Egiptian president Mubarak. Now the time has come for the 70 year old North-Korean supreme leader Kim Jong-il to clear "the throne". The official Korean Central News Agency stated that Kim Jong II passed away due to "great mental and physical strain" after a 17 year state tenure.

Lee Myung-bak, the South-Korean president canceled all appointments and convened an emergency security session. As a result all police officers in South-Korea were called to work for emergency duty and the military is discussing whether to raise its "watchcon" and "defcon" levels.