SEOUL—South Korea’s economic performance appears to be decoupling from that of the United States. While economic growth in 2025 was around 1%—less than half that of the US—and far short of the global average of 3.3%—its stock market soared by 75%, compared to 18% growth for the S&P 500 (and well ahead of 26% and 27% growth for Japan’s Nikkei Index and the Taiwan Stock Exchange, respectively).

© Project Syndicate