Saang Joon Baak

Saang Joon Baak serves as Professor at Waseda University's School of International Liberal Studies, where he specializes in international economics with particular focus on East Asian economic relations. His academic profile demonstrates a sustained research trajectory examining exchange rate dynamics, international trade patterns, and competitive relationships between Asian economies.

Dr. Baak earned his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1997 following graduate and undergraduate studies at Seoul National University. His academic career includes research positions at the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade (1997-1999) before joining Waseda University. He maintains concurrent appointments with the Graduate School of Asia Pacific Studies and the Graduate School of Economics.

His research interests center on heterogeneous expectations in foreign exchange markets, dynamic economic modeling, exchange rate volatility, and international trade competition, particularly examining relationships between China, Japan, and Korea. Dr. Baak employs sophisticated econometric techniques including time series analysis, panel data methods, and structural modeling to investigate complex economic phenomena at detailed commodity levels.

Analysis of Dr. Baak's publication record reveals consistent scholarly output with evolving methodological sophistication. His work demonstrates progression from foundational studies on exchange rate volatility to more recent investigations of currency misalignments during significant economic periods like Abenomics. His research shows particular attention to structural breaks in economic relationships following major events like the Great Recession.

Dr. Baak maintains an active teaching schedule across multiple semesters, instructing undergraduate courses in Macroeconomics and Statistics while supervising doctoral research in Applied Macroeconometrics. His current research projects, funded through organizations like the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, focus on US-China trade tensions, structural changes in exchange rate effects, and investment behavior among Japanese manufacturing firms, reflecting his ongoing contribution to understanding evolving Asian economic dynamics.