Japan’s population decline the steepest on record

[davidpdx]

44. Same here in Korea, but I agree with the need for immigrants

in both countries. I'm not sure what the foreign population is there. Last I checked here it is just under 2 million (but that includes those who are here temporarily). Korea has made it easier to get permanent residency if you are not married. Similar to Japan most people intend to come for a year or two and then leave (that certainly was my intention, but I'm still here 11 1/2 years later).

I just finished my dissertation on how foreign consumers interact with businesses in South Korea in terms of consumer language and intercultural communication. It is a area of interest for me since I've been here so long. For my dissertation I only was able to interview foreign consumers, but I plan to do a follow-up with businesses to get their point of view. I think there is a lot to be learned. I found a few studies done in Japan on the cultural adjustment of foreigners (one of the authors was the same one who did research here in Korea).

Certainly the subject of population decline is an interesting one for anyone interested in Japan and Korea.