South Korea

BMI View: North Korea's decision in late May to cancel the test run of a new railway link between the two Koreas represents a major setback for the South's long-cherished dream of... 2006-07-06

BMI View: The Bank of Korea essentially upgraded its economic outlook in hiking interest rates by 25bps in June, and policymakers have indicated that additional monetary tightening... 2006-07-06

Asia's spectacular economic growth over the past generation has raised per capita incomes substantially, but the increases have been highly uneven across the region, and also within... 2006-06-29

BMI View: Key government departments and the IMF arestubbornly bullish toward Korean growth prospects, with the Fund even uppingits 2006 growth forecast in April from 5.0% to 5.5%.... 2006-06-14

Surging property prices continue to trouble authorities, providing scope for a wider political squabble. The ruling Uri Party campaigned (unsuccessfully) in recent local polls on... 2006-06-13

Kim Dae Jung's forthcoming trip to Pyongyang will test North-South Korean relations. There is a window of opportunity for a breakthrough, ahead of the South's 2007 presidential election.... 2006-06-08

BMI View: Official talks have begun on a long-mooted free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the US, which would facilitate further expansion of bilateral trade. While... 2006-06-08

BMI View: South Korea's main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) scored a landslide victory in the May 31 local elections, putting it in good stead to recapture the presidency in... 2006-06-07

South Korea's Q106 GDP expanded by a seasonally-adjusted 1.3% m-o-m (6.2% y-o-y) in Q106. Although the figure exceeded consensus expectations, we are concerned that it may represent... 2006-05-19

Policymakers are growing increasingly concerned over the rising currency, but we believe the won remains on course to hit our year-end KRW900/US$ target. While official intervention... 2006-05-16