North Korea’s Growing Trade Dependency on China: Mixed Strategic Implications
June 17th, 2012
Via The Council on Foreign Relations, a report on the complex relationship between China and North Korea: North Korean workers nap on piles of fertilizer shipped from China on the banks of Yalu River near the North Korean town of Sinuiju (Jacky Chen/courtesy Reuters) North Korea’s trade dependency on China has skyrocketed in the past […]
Read more »North Korea’s Resource Headache
May 10th, 2012
Courtesy of The Diplomat, an interesting look at North Korea: North Korea’s moribund economy is one that most observers would like to see marketized and internationalized. This is often considered an end in itself, wherein such transformations would expose the country to irresistible forces of social and political reform. Indeed, there’s evidence that changes in […]
Read more »North Korea: An (Economic) Enigma Wrapped In A Riddle…
March 9th, 2012
Courtesy of Foreign Policy, a look at North Korea’s economic performance: The government of North Korea regards economic statistics as state secrets, which makes the country’s economy difficult to study. I do careful survey research on the North Korean economy by surveying defectors, Chinese enterprises, and South Korean firms. Still, North Korea is so opaque […]
Read more »China’s “Rason d’Etre” For Investing In North Korea
February 22nd, 2012
Via STRATFOR, some analysis on the reported Chinese investment in North Korea’s Rajin-Sonbong Special Economic Zone. As the article notes: “…The Chinese Foreign Ministry denied allegations made in a Feb. 16 South Korean media report regarding its agreement with North Korea to jointly develop the Rajin-Sonbong Special Economic Zone, a port area in northeast North […]
Read more »North Korea: Authoritarian Capitalism
January 11th, 2012
Via Forbes, commentary on the future of free enterprise in North Korea. As the article notes: “DOES THE DEATH of Kim Jong Il portend any change in foreign trade and investment with a range of “enemies,” including the U.S.? Maybe. Dear Leader’s anointed successor, third son Kim Jong Un (a.k.a. “Brilliant Comrade”), is believed to […]
Read more »Welcome To North Korea…
November 20th, 2011
Courtesy of Michael Totten and PJMedia, an interesting look at North Korea: I would love to visit North Korea and write about it, but I can’t. Journalists are almost never allowed into the country. I would need to be one of the lucky few who are given a visa or I’ll have to wait for […]
Read more »Focusing primarily on The New Seven Sisters - the largely state owned petroleum companies from the emerging world that have become key players in the oil & gas industry as identified by Carola Hoyos, Chief Energy Correspondent for The Financial Times - but spanning other nascent opportunities around the globe that may hold potential in the years ahead, Wildcats & Black Sheep is a place for the adventurous to contemplate & evaluate the emerging markets of tomorrow.