Sex Scandals, IPOs, Succession Shaped Asia’s 2012
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Dec. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Few people are happier to see 2012end than Hu Jintao, Yoshihiko Noda or Lee Myung Bak. It was arocky year for the leaders of China, Japan and South Korea, wholeave office with legacies in tatters.
Gripes about President Hu doing little about China’sbiggest challenges outnumbered the accolades. Noda’s premiershipended as ingloriously as those of the other five leaders Japanhas had in the past six years. Lee’s time as president will beremembered for South Korea’s widening rich-poor divide and NorthKorea’s march toward nuclear-missile capability. Tensions overtiny islands meant East Asia’s three biggest economies barelyspoke to one another.