At the BYCIG we write Wednesday briefs every week. This briefs are short updates on what we are looking at in the world and in financial markets. Here we will often give members new to leadership roles opportunities for them to get their research put in the spotlight. Hope you enjoy your Wednesday and enjoy the Wednesday Brief.
South Korea – Civil unrest and economic turmoil in Southeast Asia
The world has become accustomed to unusual and surprising political events around the globe, but South Korea has just had something shocking happen even by our modern standards. The President made a decision to impose martial law without any warning. He said in a speech yesterday,
” I am declaring martial law to protect South Korea from the North Korean communist forces, eliminate shameless pro- North Korean and anti-state forces that pray upon the happiness and freedom of our people, and protect the free constitutional order.” President of South Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol
So what does that mean? What he was arguing is that the South Korean nation has been suffering a quiet insurgence. If it was true that the North Koreans had been infiltrating the South Korean nation than the decision to impose martial law wouldn’t have been groundless. The problem is that no one else seemed to notice the problem except for him.
Part of the reason why many internationals are confused about the recent episode in South Korea is that they don’t understand what martial law really is. Martial law, specifically in South Korea, is a provision that allows the president to essentially take control of the army to protect the nation in times of danger. The exact wording for when to use the martial law provision is, “wartime, war-like situations or other comparable national emergency states.” The concern for the great majority of South Koreans is that they didn’t see themselves as being in a time of such nature.
We don’t have any analysis on the issue but we will say the following. This government turmoil is a major component of anyone attempting to make an arguments for not just the South Korean economy but also all emerging market economies. We see increasingly high volatility in the markets of very developed nations such as the US, the UK, and France. We have seen many former emerging markets being included into the developed markets category as of late, South Korea being one of them.
We urge caution for investors looking to diversify into markets that have only recently emerged as stable economies. While South Korea has a well developed economy, their political institutions appear shaky. In tandem with the household debt issue in South Korea as well as potential tariffs that the US might inflict on the nation. Our one sentence of advisory (this is not investment advice), tread carefully.
United Healthcare CEO killed in Manhattan
A tragic episode occurred in midtown Manhattan this morning, where the CEO of UNH was killed by an unknown suspect on the street outside his hotel. The event shocked much of the world when it was reported in the news this morning. The BYCIG is grieving for his family and the entire UNH business. The police are currently searching for the suspect. We condemn all violence, especially violence that is tied to financial motives, and we hope we can avoid having any more episodes of this nature again in the future.
Trump considers DeSantis for the role he previously offered to Pete Hegseth
Trump has appointed a wide array of unusual, unexpected, and in some cases, unqualified candidates to his cabinet. Following the resignation of Matt Gaetz from the appointment to the Attorney General position, many are wondering if Pete Hegseth may be asked to do the same because of the difficulty the administration may have in getting him approved. Hegseth has been accused of sexual assault in prior years and is seen by many as morally and professionally unqualified. The BYCIG hopes that the army of our nation is in better hands than those of a potentially malicious former Fox News political pundit.
Spotify Wrapped Day – What is it and what does it tell us about Spotify?
Spotify Wrapped came out today for every Spotify user. The feature is a trademark of the music sharing business that is cited as one of the key components of their brand. Our BYCIG Spotify users have commented that they are pleased with the feature, and appreciate that Spotify makes this information available to users.
We are currently conducting research on the Spotify business and many of our analysts view it as a potentially attractive investment opportunity for the fund.
That’s a wrap on our short Wednesday briefing. Hope you enjoyed reading, and check back in for more next Wednesday.
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