The Economic Impact of Establishing a Customs Free Zone in the Port of Busan Focusing on the Time of Completion of the 1st Phase of the New Port of Pusan

부산항 관세자유지대의 경제적 파급효과에 관한 연구 - 부산신항만 1단계 준공시점을 대상으로 -

This study focuses on analyzing the economic effects and probes the necessity of establishing a customs free zone at the Port of Busan. It first considers the economic effects of establishing a customs free zone at the Port of Busan, then suggests policy prescriptions for introducing and operating the free zone system and improving the logistics functions of the Port. The timeline of this study is focused on 2007, when all of Busan Port will operate as a customs free zone and the first stage of the New Busan Port and distribution parks will be built and opened for operation. The regression analysis, which was conducted using the inter-industry relations table(input-output table data), provided a quantitative prediction on the effects of making Busan Port into a customs free zone. Regarding the impact of a free zone system on the domestic and regional economy, this research found that the impact of a customs free zone on domestic industries and the regional economy once the customs free zone is established throughout all of Busan Port would be highly positive. The positive economic effects on the domestic and Busan regional economy might be further strengthened if the value-added logistics function of Busan Port could be supplemented by effective linking to the hinterlands.