The view from South Korea, which will hold its own presidential elections in December, is that a second Obama term won't sharply diverge from his first, reports Peter Ford from Beijing (Read his Monitor piece: Obama win Asia sees key prize.)
鈥淲e don鈥檛 expect any changes in Obama鈥檚 foreign policy toward North Korea or Northeast Asia,鈥� says Kim Dae-joong, a conservative columnist with the Chosun Ilbo, a Korean daily newspaper.
Not that Mr. Kim is especially happy with that, since neither the US, nor any of the regional powers involved in six-party talks to dismantle North Korea鈥檚 nuclear weapons program, has had any tangible success so far.
Obama鈥檚 second term 鈥渨ill just be a continuation of his first-term policy鈥� toward the Korean peninsula, says Kim. 鈥淎nd I don鈥檛 think he has any greater chances of success than he did in his first term.鈥�
Still, South Korea's popular English language news service Yonhap will likely have a positive impact on the Korean economy because it would help ease uncertainty over the future of US policy:
The results of the election have been closely watched as any change in policy direction in the U.S. could have a significant ripple effect on other countries, especially at a time when the world is faced with eurozone debt problems and worries over a global slowdown.
"In times of crisis, it is most meaningful in that uncertainty over policy change has eased," said Choi Sang-mok, the head of the finance ministry's economic policy bureau.
