Beware of Greeks Bearing Bonds

courtesy of "Beware of Greeks Bearing Bonds" by Michael Lewis 

 1) choose one passage from the reading that you found particularly interesting. Why was it interesting?

 Before I read this article, I never heard Greece being in this situation. The passage that fascinated me was on paragraph 3 which the author, Michael Lewis, talked about his reasons for being in Greece at the time. It also talked about how "different societies were touched by the same event" but each response was different. Each society had their own say in the matter "financial-disaster tourism." The author did not go to Greece to church but because he had the "opportunity to travel" there.

2) Greece's economy is very small compared to other European Union economies, yet problems in Greece threaten the rest of Europe. Why?

I believe that Greece threatens the rest of European economies because they share the same currency. Because each economy is tied into one currency, it will affect all, making it depreciate or appreciate if the economy is not going well as expected.

3) As a part of a European bailout, Greece agreed to an austerity program of large cuts in government spending and increases in taxes. The Greek public has strongly opposed these measures. Use the short-run National Income model (discussed earlier in class) to explain this opposition.

There would be a decrease in government spending, the increase in taxes will lower consumption rates, which the GDP therefore goes down and cut services applicable to the country.

Seoul, Washington, Tokyo warn N.K. against further provocations

courtesy of http://view.koreaherald.com/kh/view.php?ud=20120521001242

On Monday, South Korea, US, and Japan warned North Korea to stop their nuclear transactions. The three countries expect that North Korea will make better decisions that would not harm others in the world, cease nuclear missile program, and benefit the people of North Korea.

South Korea, US, and Japan are worried for more nuclear testings by North Korea, knowing that they unsuccessfully launched a rocket in April.13. If North Korea launch their third nuclear test, the satellite photos are tracked down in the "northeastern village of Punggye." 

Tensions in the demilitarized zone aroused as North Korea tried to demolish the South Korean government when the South Korea president Lee Myung-bak criticized the failure of the rocket launch.   

 

The picture in the article as shown on the left showed the three representatives (Japanese Shinsuke Sugiyama director, South Korean chief nuclear envoy, Lim Sung-nam, and U.S. special representative Glyn Davies, respectively) shaking hands at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul on Monday.

  

As the talk continues, South Korea, US, and Japan hopes that North Korea will change their mind about the nuclear testing and rocket launches.

Response to “How Walmart is changing China” by Orville Schell

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/12/how-walmart-is-changing-china/8709/

1) Choose one passage from the reading that you found particularly interesting. Why was this interesting?
The passage that described the scenery of the orchards and the cropland was interesting. This was highly because the author mentioned about how Chinese people do business by telling a story about her family. Liu Mei stated that the business could be more profitable and efficient because in China, "such rags-to-riches stories are unusual."

2) Use examples from this reading to illustrate the interaction between multinational firms, economics, and culture. 
Walmart is a good example of interactions between firms and culture. The author explains the interactions between farmers in that the "retailer is better able to control the standards of food it advertises as green or organic." The buyer trusts Walmart that he or she will keep on buying products from there. This being said that people will go and buy products from places because it is convenient and cheap. 

3) Beyond the specifics of this article, what impact do multinational firms have on economics and culture? Have they had an impact on your country?
Different cultures can affect different standards of multinational firms. The culture can have an effect on pricing, products and distribution, meaning that "what goes up, must come down." Given the standards of reliability in markets, people are more willing to purchase goods from that place than other places. Yes,  multinational firms have benefited in my country as well because it is convenient to buy goods in high quality standards and also cheap too.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in Burma visit

On Monday May 14, the article stated that there was a North Korean bombing attack in 1983, 29 years ago. Because of this issue, South Korean president Lee Myung-bak visited Burma to discuss the security concerns. He traveled to Burma from Beijing to have trilateral talks with Chinese and Japanese leaders for two days. At the meeting, the Chinese stated that "Pyongyang may be planning a third nuclear test." This will cause major disturbances to South Korea, China, and possibly Japan as North Korea failed to launch their rocket. President Lee Myung-bak trip is for diplomatic purposes not for economic ties, as it may be in South Korea's interest. When looking at the military links, Burma and North Korea had diplomatic ties twice and may be working together to develop nuclear missiles. That in said, tensions have aroused, making police to search for clues especially "around the shrine where the attack took place in 1983."


courtesy of http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-18055319

EGT Consulting

Vehicle Market Executive Summary

EGT Consulting needs a concise summary and the most compelling parts of your analysis of your motor vehicle. 

South Korea has a population of 48,860,500 million people, who live mostly in Seoul,  and GDP per capita at $31,700. Despite the financial crisis in 1980's, South Korea managed to get out of it. South Korea is one of the Asian Tigers, who experienced the high industrialized growth rate in 1960 and 1990. Currently, South Korea is one of highly developed economies in Asia. I firmly believe that South Korea is a great place to do business and most people are affordable to buy motor scooters, sedan, but not as much towards limousines market.

The motor scooter highly appeals to people who have the affordable means of transportation to get around places with ease and comfort, especially in Changwon, the 8th populous city in South Korea. Changwon is a industrial city where it is mostly green and electric motor scooters are accessible for the middle class. 300,000 electric motor scooters were sold per year since 1962. It is also sold in places like Spain, France, Germany, England, and Italy.

The Sedan is also affordable for middle-upper class men because the price varies from time to time. People have the income to buy a Sedan. However, the limousine appeals to some middle-class but mostly upper class since only 1~2% of South Koreans like CEO's or ambassadors, or business owners who can afford to buy the vehicle themselves.

To conclude, I believe that motor electric scooters, and Sedan are the most viable option to sell in South Korea and not so much in limousines.

N.Korean GPS Jamming Threatens Passenger Planes

courtesy of http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2012/05/10/2012051000917.html

The North Korean GPS threatened passengers to Incheon International Airport in South Korea, one of the major airports. "According to the government, 667 aircraft were affected by North Korean GPS jamming signals since April 28. They include 618 Korean passenger planes, 48 foreign passenger planes, including 17 U.S., 10 Japanese and six Chinese, and one U.S. military aircraft." The jamming caused serious issues such as almost leading them into the North Korean territory. Because of this issue, South Korean sent a letter to North Korea via the boarder of the truce line, Panmunjom, but they refused to take any action against it. South Korea is seeking for international connections to protest against the North Korean GPS issue.

Reinventing the Bazzar

1) Choose a passage from the reading that you found particularly interesting.  Why was it interesting?
One passage mentioned about that the internet made bargaining easier for the buyers and the sellers by "improving the efficiency of the market mechanization." This meant that because more people were willing to buy more products, the more advantageous it became.
2) What does the author mean by transactions costs?  Give examples.
When the author mean transactions costs, he means that there's friction in the market with the buyer and the seller. Also it is the extra costs beyond the exchange costs and also it is a way to determine information, decision-making, and transportation costs.
3) Simple economic models often assume perfect information (everyone knows everything, everywhere.)  What effects arise from imperfect information?  Who gains and who loses when information is unevenly distributed?
"Bazzar merchants sometimes actively try to increase search costs by hiding price information" (pg.42) which means that they set the price high then bargain with the seller to the reasonable price where it is not too low or not too high, just right. They might charge tourists higher prices just for the sake of them paying that much since they do not know the country as much as natives do. The information would not flow easily if the information is unevenly distributed. Such advertisements can cause a downturn and so the buyers need to take "advantage of an cause markets to function at a low level of activity."

Samsung Galaxy S3

courtesy to http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-17935684#

A South Korean smartphone brand, Samsung, unveiled the Samsung Galaxy S3. The smartphone showed improvement in the device itself. The phone became critical to how people viewed the brand and the Android system. 

The improvement allowed Samsung to increase a larger screen, bigger than the iPhone 4S. The smartphone can now recognize peoples' faces and special camera features so the owners can naturally experience it themselves.

The importance of the smartphone should not be underestimated because of Samsung's reputation. But not only does the Galaxy have to stand out of other Android phones and also have to go head-to-head with the leading brand, the iPhone.

The Samsung Galaxy S3 improved the Android system with new features, making people more willing to buy the phone.

Response and a Sneak Peak of Seoul

1) Choose one passage that you found the most interesting and explain why?

• In page 5, the passage that described why Pomegranate was the most beautiful places in the 17th Century to visit. I really liked how the author mentioned why the place attracted many visitors and how the place looked like at the time. Moreover, it also made me want to visit the place myself.

2) Use examples to illustrate the interaction between economics and culture

• There were many examples in the reading but out of those many, I would like to focus on two specific ones.  

  • The first was on page 4 where the author mentioned how tools benefited the working force such as a fax machine. He said that Pomegranate changed quickly because "working men were museum pieces" because they had experience using the tools.

  • The second was that there was some miscommunication of words represented on the main street. Because "English and German had rendered Turkish a minority language" the word was replaced as "handburgers" which is now known as hamburgers.

3) For your study abroad country, identify the leading destinations for tourists. What draws people to those places?  

Snap Shots of the Popular Attractions in Seoul

• Location: Seoul, South Korea

  • The popular attraction places are as follows: Myeongdong, Hongdae, Namdaemun, Dongdaemun, Insadong, Sinchon, and Itaewon, respectively. 

    Myeongdong 

    
    

    

    
    

    It is one of Seoul's popular place for young people and tourists as a center for fashion and sight-seeing. There are many designer brands stores, department stores,  entertainment.

    Hongdae

    

    Hongdae centers on young art. The area is a home of hundreds of bars, restaurants, nightclubs. There is also an attraction of  coffee shops, and cafes which attracts young adult population. Therefore, most of the fun happens at night.

    Namdaemun

    

    Namdaemun is the "Great South Gate" that is one of the oldest, and largest retail markets in Seoul. There are many stores that line in the streets. A variety of products sold such as souvenirs, shoes, and clothing.

    Dongdaemun

    

    Dongdaemun is the "Great East Gate" a fashion center, where shopping districts, several underground shops, and markets open during the day and night. It is now grown to be the largest shopping center.

     Insadong

    

    Insadong is a "unique area of Seoul that truly represents the cultural history of the nation." There are nation's antique shops, art galleries, and traditional stationery shops. It is a focal point of Korean traditional crafts and culture. 

    Sinchon

    

    Sinchon is close to Yonsei University, Hyundai Department Store, and CGV Cinemas. It is a mecca of nightlife in Seoul with international restaurants, bars, and pubs that draws young adults, and a vicinity of bus stations that takes people out to the suburbs.

    Itaewon

    

    Itaewon is known for international cuisines (India, Thailand, and Mexico) foods that are not widely available in South Korea. There are dozens of street shops in the alleys that sell clothing, Korean traditional products and clubs.