Rocks Roil Korea, Japan Economies

2005 was supposed to be the “Year of Korea-Japan Friendship” unfortunately this is not going to happen in the near future. The latest conflict is over 57 acres of uninhabited volcanic rock sticking out of the ocean. The problem arose after a move by Japan’s Shimane prefecture to pass a law underlying claims for sovereignty over these two islands called Dokto by Korea and Takeshima by Japan. The land is not good quality and there is no fresh water, but there are many fish in those waters. Japan says that its economy relies of those waters to support their fishing industry. But if this problem gets out of control Japan may be worrying about more than just a few fish. The economies all over Asia are beginning to see the effects of this problem. There are three main areas of the economies in Asia that are especially vulnerable; the automobile industry, entertainment, and tourism. In Korea there has been a significant decrease in the amount of Toyota vehicles that are demanded since the onset of the problems concerning this dispute. There is a similar situation happening right now between China and Taiwan. If these countries do not resolve there conflicts peacefully and quickly, the rapid rise of Asia and its stability may come to a halt.