Robert Kuok: Family,Dialect, and State in the Making of a Malaysian Magnate

Chinese overseas family businesses generally lack longevity. In addition to difficulties in transiting towards professional management they are susceptible to state pressures. However, Robert Kuok, the richest man in Southeast Asia who heads a vast business empire, has been able to surmount both challenges. This study shows how Kuok successfully turned three important sources of identity into strengths: family, dialect, and the state. These three sources are set against his Johor Bahru background, the changing domestic political landscape, and shifting regional economic influence.     

Human Capital and Economic Growth in Asia 1890–2000: A Time‐series Analysis*

There is a general consensus that human capital is a major factor behind long‐run economic growth. Yet, on a macro level, the empirical results do not always seem to concur with this view. To explain this gap between theory and empirics, more focus has been laid on measurement error and data quality. Using an alternative estimate of the stock of human capital, based on Judson (2002), we find evidence that the two major views on the role of human capital in economic development by Lucas (1988) and Romer (1990) coexist and are by no means mutually exclusive. Using a Johansen cointegration test, we find that in India and Indonesia the level of human capital is cointegrated with the level of aggregate income during the whole 20th century, which confirms the theory of Lucas (1988). In Japan, however, the Lucasian approach can be verified only for the first half of the century, while after 1950 there is cointegration between the growth rate of aggregate income and the level of human capital, which is in line with Romer's view.