International Airline Traffic Surges 22.6%

courtesy of http://view.koreaherald.com/kh/view.php?ud=20120528000238&cpv=0

On Monday, May 28th, international flight traffic has increased gradually in sheer numbers. People from different countries traveled to South Korea because they want experience a different culture and because of tourist attractions. Many visitors traveled to South Korea from other countries such as Japan and China. The data stated that about 3.75 million people traveled to South Korea for vacation in April.Not only does South Korea benefited, China and Japan has increased in tourism as well. People have been coming and going from and to Japan due to the massive earthquake that shook the country. Therefore, the author mentioned that in the future, more and more visitors are willing to travel to different countries to experience different cultures.

Reflection

1) what did you learn in this class that you believe will be most directly applicable to understanding how the world works?
I thought that learning about allocation of resources helped me to understand why some countries are poor and rich. Depending on which resources a country have will determine their country's standard of living. GDP, scarcity and so forth...
2) what topics are you interested in learning more about, after this class ends?
I want to learn how to negotiate with different countries so I can understand the cultural differences in doing business internationally.
3) what advice would you give to a student considering taking this class?
I would advice a student to understand a specific country's differences and similarities of doing business in that country. For example like learning about the country's stereotypes, foreign exchange rates, and experiencing culture shock.

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.