Whether by foreigners or locals resurgent trading in the Japan market has been a boon to Japanese securities firms, especially the longtime disappointing and accident prone Nomura.

FORBES: Whither Japan Stocks: Investors Saying 'Show Me Growth'; Sharp On Life Support

The construction boom comes as prices have risen 70% in the past five years, prompting the government to impose taxes on sales to foreigners or on locals buying multiple units.

WSJ: Property Prices Cool Across Asia

Foreigners dislike the thicket of taxes through which they must fight, the high prices they must pay (hotels routinely charge foreigners two or three times as much as locals), the fact that it is virtually impossible to lay off labour and the endless haggling and quibbling.

ECONOMIST: Stunted and distorted | The

The architect, who studied in Wisconsin, had been shocked when, on a visit home to the town of Buea, he was confronted with a community ravaged by AIDS. Though aid workers were teaching the message of prevention, Menyoli found that most locals trusted foreigners more readily when they said that HIV was not a lie or a conspiracy but a fatal disease.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS