What information should I look for when researching a countries economy?

Question

I am working on a project for my Business English class that involves looking into the economy of a few different counties. In the project, I am supposed to be deciding which country to expand my hypothetical business to. There is a lot of economic information out there, I am just not sure what is the most important information when it comes to a countries economy. I know I should consider things like the countries GDP, GDP growth rate, inflation, and revenues/expenses. Is there anything else I need to look into? What would be the most important aspect of a counties economy? The countries I am researching are Japan and South Korea so any information on the economies of those two countries would be helpful also.

Answer 1

The IMF's reports for the "Article IV consultation" and their "selected issues" reports might be good places to start. Here's the latest one for Korea, e.g.: https://www.imf.org/~/media/Files/Publications/CR/2018/cr1841.ashx

Answer 2

The World Bank publishes an annual "Doing Business" index that ranks countries according to how business-friendly their regulations are.  You can find the reports and links to the data here:  http://www.doingbusiness.org

(There has been some controversy over this index, and whether it was manipulated for political reasons.  See https://paulromer.net/my-unclear-comments-about-the-doing-business-report/  I still think it could be useful for your assignment.)

Answer 3

I personally think the infant mortality rate, toddler mortality rate, and maternal mortality rate at birth are hugely telling of both economic development and inequality.  They're also fairly well and comparably measured across a wide range of countries (incomes are harder to compare for instance when prices are hugely different).