Economist Sohn Sung-won |
This is the second in a series of interviews featuring notable Koreans who have pushed the limits in different fields in the United States.
By Jane Han
Korea Times Correspondent
NEW YORK ― Sohn Sung-won's career has taken him everywhere from the White House to Wall Street over the past four decades, but he says making an English name ― shorter and easier to pronounce ― was out of the question.
``If I was a John, David or any other common English name, people wouldn't have remembered me so much,'' says Sohn, a Korean-American veteran economist renowned for his accurate forecasts.
The 66-year-old, who was recently named among The Wall Street Journal's top five economic forecasters in the U.S., said his Asian background only helped him in getting his career started in the cutthroat industry.
His stint at the White House during the Richard Nixon administration opened doors to begin his 30-year work at Wells Fargo, where he left in 2005 as a chief economist to become CEO of Hanmi Financial Corporation, the largest Korean-American bank. Sohn retired from Hanmi in 2007.
Now a professor at California State University, Sohn is one of the most-quoted economists by major news outlets for his precise foresight.
Bloomberg News, Blue Chip Publications and the WSJ are among those that picked him as one of the top U.S. economists.
``Pinning down a forecast is anything but easy,'' he said in an interview with The Korea Times. But the special ``sense,'' he says, comes with experience.
``Data is important but it can also just be yesterday's news,'' said Sohn, ``so I collect a lion's share of my information from continuously talking to people and experts to get tomorrow's news.''
Sohn's accuracy comes from his hard work, but it may also be in his blood.
Growing up as a banker's son, Sohn says money talk was always familiar territory for him.
``Over dinner or whenever, money and banks were common topics of discussion at home,'' he recalled.
Born and raised in Gwangju, Sohn lived as an ordinary teenager until he decided to leave Korea at age 17.
In 1962, he arrived in the U.S., where he earned degrees from the University of Florida, University of Pittsburgh and Harvard University.
``I pursued my dream to come to the U.S. despite my parents' disapproval because I knew there was a lot to see and learn,'' said Sohn, who started with just $100 to his name.
He made his name in the U.S., but always kept a place in his heart for his native country.
``I'm proud to be a Korean and proud of Korea,'' said Sohn. ``The country has so much potential.''
He said Korea can do so much more if globalization is undertaken not only in words, but in action.
``We need to open up to foreigners a lot more,'' said Sohn, who lamented that even Koreans living abroad don't feel welcomed when they return to their home country.
He stressed that removing the deeply-rooted barriers against foreigners is the first step to developing the nation's financial market.
Exemplifying the ``Wimbledon Effect,'' Sohn said it shouldn't matter if foreigners do well and reap success in Korea.
The term compares foreign financial firms' success in London with the Wimbledon Tennis Championships. Just as most of the winners of the famous tennis tournament tend to be foreigners, foreign companies make up the bulk of financial businesses in London.
But neither matters, because even if foreigners are successful, the action is happening in London, says Sohn.
``We need to first invite people in and stir up action,'' he said, adding that Koreans should also continue to spread overseas.
Sohn attributed Taiwan and Hong Kong's success to the large number of overseas Chinese.
``These people abroad build relationships and bring their experience back home,'' he said, ``and all of that adds up.''
The seasoned economist went on to say that Korea's services industry needs significant building to drive the nation's economy another few decades.
``The manufacturing sector worked for the past 50 years, but that's not enough now,'' said Sohn, adding that the financial, medical, tourism and retail industries need to become more foreigner-friendly.
``Changes don't happen overnight but they can happen with a changed mindset,'' he said.
jhan@koreatimes.co.kr
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