[THE INVESTOR] The Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has come up with a new set of measures to promote Korea’s slumping game industry.Dubbed “A Five-Year Plan to Enhance the Gaming Culture,” the new measures focus more on creating a healthy gaming culture than supporting game developers. The policy shift is based on the realization that the game industry cannot prosper unless people’s negative perceptions toward online games change.The government’s policy toward the game industry ha

Last year was a tough one for President Park Geun-hye. The top priority for the nation’s first female president in her first year in office was to revitalize the sagging economy to improve people’s lives. But her performance on these fronts was less than impressive.Economic growth in 2013 is estimated at 2.8 percent, higher than 2 percent in 2012 but still much lower than the nation’s potential growth rate of around 4 percent. The government managed to prevent the economy from getting stuck in a

It’s official: The Republican-controlled House and the Democrat-controlled Senate agreed on so few issues this year, Congress is on pace to pass the fewest bills in a two-year term since World War II. Pundits have compared the current occupants of Capitol Hill unfavorably to the infamous “Do-Nothing Congress” of 1947-48, which was a dynamo in comparison. Lawmakers passed 1,729 bills in that two-year term, compared to 58 in the first year of this one. Unless something changes dramatically in the

BANGKOK ― Thailand is once again being convulsed by extreme partisan politics, with the country’s polarization playing out on Bangkok’s streets. Several people have been killed, and many more have been injured. The sense that Thailand has been through all of this before would be mildly reassuring were it not for a nagging fear that this decent and prosperous society may be set to destroy its democracy.Much of the violence has been led by Suthep Thaugsuban, a former deputy prime minister. He has

NEW YORK ― A half-century ago, John F. Kennedy observed that, “man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life.” Those words speak to us today with special urgency.Our generation can indeed end the ancient scourge of extreme poverty. Yet it can also destroy the earth’s life-support system through human-induced environmental devastation.By necessity, then, we have entered The Age of Sustainable Development. So I am enormously excited to be

South Korea’s monthly exports crossed the $50 billion mark for the first time in October. Solid demand from the developed world was what drove the country’s performance. Korea has also run a current account surplus for 19 straight months. The country’s foreign-exchange reserves increased to $343.2 billion in October, pushing it into seventh place globally. The recovery in Korea’s economy is looking more stable, and Korea should be commended for this. Such a brilliant achievement, however, may no

It’s that time of year when journalists let their creativity run rampant to produce 10-Best and 10-Worst lists, revisit the year’s biggest whoppers (look no further than the Oval Office), and offer prognostications for the coming year. With that in mind, I’ve gleaned the five most important lessons from 2013, which are all but guaranteed to be forgotten next year.No. 1. Beware political pronouncements posing as economic forecasts.Before, during and after the federal government shutdown in Octobe

By the looks of it, U.S. President Barack Obama may be close to joining the French in taking on the Chinese ― in Africa.According to my sources in the French government, Obama made it clear to both British and French leadership at the onset of his presidency that he was going to leave it to them to protect unstable African countries while he focused on Sino-American relations. Perhaps Obama realizes that Africa is just an extension of China’s backyard.In a letter to Congress, Obama wrote, “I may

As India prepares for national elections in May, what is being called the “Modi wave” seems almost unstoppable. Since naming Narendra Modi ― the controversial chief minister of the state of Gujarat ― as its prime ministerial candidate, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party has consistently topped opinion polls. Modi’s BJP decimated the ruling Congress Party in recent state elections ― a harbinger, many now believe, of the national outcome.Before they start measuring drapes in Delhi ministries, h