• Korea Trade Review
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.25-44
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• 2021

This paper analyzes the impact of the recent change in global value chain on the productivity of manufacturing sectors and firms in Chungnam area using ADB MRIO. Forward participation significantly increases sector productivity in Chungnam area and backward participation affects the sector productivity after 2015. In the analysis for firm productivity in Chungnam area, GVC participation does not enhance the productivity of firms in Chungnam area. However, firms in the top 25% of productivity in 2007 improved their productivity with higher GVC participation and the productivity of firms in the top 25% of asset in 2007 was positively affected by forward pariticipation and negatively affected by backward participation. The productivity of firms that were in international market in 2007 was significantly worsened by GVC participation.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.339-355
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• 2006

In this paper, we reviewed the assessment criteria and conservation value used to evaluate vegetation. The Degree of Green Naturality (DGN) and the Grade of Vegetation Conservation (GVC) are both sets of criteria that estimate the degree of human disturbance or natural value of vegetation. The criteria are extensively used in decision-making about the natural environment conservation and environment impact assessment. Sometimes, social issues can rise because the criteria are not clear. This study aims to evaluate the criteria based on the many aspects of the related literatures and suggest reasonable revised criteria. In addition, criteria for representing the relative value of valuable vegetation conservation are suggested. The DGN and GVC are essentially same; both have 11 degrees and 5 grades. While the DGN is subdivided into levels of anthropogenic disturbances, the GVC indicates the priority for conserving valuable vegetation. Therefore, the DGN is very useful for assessing land development projects, etc., while the GVC is needed to delineate the Ecological Assessment Map(EAM). In conclusion, it is desirable that both criteria should be used together appropriately.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.1-19
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• 2019

Purpose - This research examines the effect of a foreign subsidiary on the productivity growth of a Two-way trading manufacturing firm in Korea. We explore firms engaged in both trade and FDI simultaneously to verify whether participation in GVC as a broad concept is an efficient internationalization strategy to increase the productivity of a Korean manufacturing firm. Design/methodology - Based on the firm-level data by utilizing the Survey of Business Activities from Statistics Korea, we examine the impact of vertically integrated foreign subsidiaries on the productivity of a manufacturing firm that exports and imports simultaneously. Findings - The results show that if a Two-way trading firm establishes one or more overseas subsidiaries, the total factor productivity growth increases. Moreover, the FDI effect is statistically significant when the destination country has an economically close relationship with Korea. However, these effects are disparate depending on the industrial competitiveness or market situation where the subsidiary is located. Nonetheless, the synergy effect resulting from industrial combination is represented in China and the USA only. Originality/value - As the importance of GVC has become more emphasized around the world. In spite of the scarcity of related domestic studies, we explored the effect of multinational manufacturing firms participating in GVC using firm-level data.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.1-19
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• 2019

This paper investigates the effects of TPP on Korean domestic employment. Using data from 1995-2011 obtained from the world input-output database (WIOD) and firm-level data, this paper attempts to identify changes in global value chain (GVC) structures involving Korea and TPP member countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Three stage least squares estimation is employed, and empirical findings show that there exists a statistically positive and significant causal relationship between GVC and domestic manufacturing employment. The positive impacts of TPP on Korean domestic employment suggest that Korea actively encourage TPP negotiation. TPP will bring positive domestic employment effects and opportunities for structural transformation in the manufacturing and services industries in Korea.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.146-163
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• 2021

Purpose - This paper examines China's impact on Korea's ICT exports considering the direct competition channel, the production shift channel, and the indirect demand channel at once. This paper also takes China's economic rebalancing into account and discusses whether it makes any differences in the effect of the three channels. Design/methodology - To quantify the effect of the three channels, I constructed a linear panel regression model and estimated it with various estimation methods including the system GMM. China's exports toward the same destination as Korea's exports, Korea's exports toward China, and the third countries' exports toward China respectively reflect the three channels. China's GVC indicators are included as well to evaluate the effect of further China's economic rebalancing. Since the present paper has a greater interest in the effect of China rather than the determinant of bilateral trade, a (fixed effect) panel model becomes more appropriate than the gravity model because timeinvariant variables in the gravity model, such as the distance and the language, are eliminated during the estimation process. Findings - The estimation results indicate that Chinese ICT exports are complementary to Korea's ICT exports in general. However, when markets are considered in subgroups, China's ICT exports could have a negative effect in the long run, especially for SITC75 and SITC76 markets, implying a possible competitive threat of China. The production shift effect turns significant during China's economic rebalancing in the markets for the advanced economies and the SITC76 product. China's indirect demand channel is also in effect significantly for the advanced economy and SITC75 commodities during China's economic rebalancing periods. In addition, this paper shows that China's transition toward upstream in the global value chain could have a positive impact on Korea's ICT exports, especially at the Asian market. Originality/value - The contribution of this paper is threefold. First, it focuses on the ICT industry for which Korea increasingly depends on China and China becomes a global hub of the GVC. Second, this paper quantitatively studies three channels in a model in contrast to the literature which mostly examines those channels separately and pays less attention to the GVC aspect. Third, by utilizing relatively recent data from the period of 2001-2017, this paper discusses whether China's economic rebalancing affects the three channels.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.24 no.8
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• pp.133-152
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• 2020

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to analyze the determinants of commodity trade in Korea and China and to examine the implications of China's GVC shift from export to domestic market on its impact on Korea's trade. Design/methodology - This study selected 30 major trading partner countries. The dependent variable is the trade volume, and the independent variables are general economic factors such as gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, distance, and FTA. Findings - The trade pattern of Korea's commodities shows that GDP has a positive relationship with trade, import, and export. Distance has a significant negative relationship with total trade, import, and export. FTA is significant for import but it is not significant for total trade and export. The trade pattern of China's commodities shows that GDP has a significant positive relationship with total trade, import, and export. Distance has a negative relationship with trade, import, and export. GDP per capita is not significant for total trade and import, but it is significant for export. FTA is significant for total trade and export, but it is not significant for import. Originality/value - Existing papers were studied mainly in certain industrial sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, automobile industry and steel industry. This paper attempts to collects vast amounts of data about the 30 countries of Korea and China respectively and analyzes by Random Effect Model dividing the goods (0 to 9) in units of STIC (Rev. 4). The major contribution is that the decision factors affecting commodity trade can be analyzed in SITC units (0-9) to obtain analysis results that are subdivided by product group and organized by product.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.97-106
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• 2020

Purpose: Participation of firms in Global Value Chains (GVC) has contributed significantly to the improvement of economic outcomes for firms in developing countries. However, evidence suggests that these economic outcomes are gained at the cost of labourers' poor working conditions. This research contributes to existing literature on GVCs by investigating the influence of different governance structures on economic and social upgrading of firms participating in GVCs. Furthermore, the research attempts to understand the relationship between economic and social upgrading in GVCs. Research design and methodology: Detailed qualitative primary research was carried out in the football industry of Sialkot, Pakistan. The case study approach was employed, and football firms were the unit of analysis. Semi-structured interviews with firms' representatives were conducted. Results: Findings reveal that most firms were found in captive, relational and market governance structures. Furthermore, product and process upgrading were witnessed in all firms; however, social upgrading was observed mostly in captive and relational GVCs. Moreover, social upgrading was linked to economic upgrading in captive and relational networks. Conclusions: The findings from the Sialkot football industry reflect that buyers pay higher prices and margins to their suppliers once they upgrade their products and processes.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.280-295
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• 2022

This paper contains an introduction to industrial problems, solutions, and results conducted with the Korea Association of Machinery Industry. The client company commissioned the problem of upgrading the method of identifying global supply risky items. Accordingly, the factors affecting the supply and demand of imported items in the global supply chain were identified and the method of selecting risky items was studied and delivered. Through research and discussions with the client companies, it is confirmed that the most suitable factors for identifying global supply risky items are 'import size', 'import dependence', and 'trend abnormality'. The meaning of each indicator is introduced, and risky items are selected using export/import data until October 2022. Through this paper, it is expected that countries and companies will be able to identify global supply risky items in advance and prepare for risks in the new normal situation: the economic situation caused by infectious diseases such as the COVID-19 pandemic; and the export/import regulation due to geopolitical problems. The client company will include in his report, the method presented in this paper and the risky items selected by the method.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.1-19
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• 2021

Purpose - This paper aims at analyzing the functions and effectiveness of the cooperation agenda in Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), focusing on the cases of Asian countries. This paper estimates the contribution of this agenda to the sustainable development in Asia by providing the 'side payment' of the economic integration that encourages foreign investment and change in global value chains (GVC). Design/methodology - This study analyzes the functions of the cooperation chapter in FTAs by applying the cooperative game theory and reviewing the structures of the related FTAs. Also, as an empirical study, the existing FTA provisions and related development assistant programs in Asia are reviewed in this paper, especially focusing on the FTAs signed by Korea. Findings - Our main findings can be summarized as follows: The drawback of the economic integration, which would be the imbalanced economic benefit, can be redressed by the cooperation chapter in FTAs functioning as a 'side payment'. Indeed, as the examples of Korean FTAs show, more foreign investment and the GVC expansion in Asian countries have been encouraged thanks to the implementation of the cooperation chapters. Originality/value - This paper attempts to find how a legally binding agreement would influence the cooperation agenda in Asia which has never been analyzed despite the increasing number of so-called 'cooperation' chapters in the FTAs.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.175-196
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• 2022

Information and communication and home appliance industries, which were one of South Korea's main industries, are gradually losing their export share as their export competitiveness is weakening. This study objectively analyzed export competitiveness and suggested export-promising countries in order to help South Korea's information communication and home appliance industries improve exports. In this study, network properties, centrality, and structural hole analysis were performed during network analysis to evaluate export competitiveness. In order to select promising export countries, we proposed a new variable that can take into account the characteristics of an already established International Trade Network (ITN), that is, the Global Value Chain (GVC), in addition to the existing economic factors. The conditional log-odds for individual links derived from the Exponential Random Graph Model (ERGM) in the analysis of the cross-border trade network were assumed as a proxy variable that can indicate the export potential. In consideration of the possibility of ERGM linkage, a parametric approach and a non-parametric approach were used to recommend export-promising countries, respectively. In the parametric method, a regression analysis model was developed to predict the export value of the information and communication and home appliance industries in South Korea by additionally considering the link-specific characteristics of the network derived from the ERGM to the existing economic factors. Also, in the non-parametric approach, an abnormality detection algorithm based on the clustering method was used, and a promising export country was proposed as a method of finding outliers that deviate from two peers. According to the research results, the structural characteristic of the export network of the industry was a network with high transferability. Also, according to the centrality analysis result, South Korea's influence on exports was weak compared to its size, and the structural hole analysis result showed that export efficiency was weak. According to the model for recommending promising exporting countries proposed by this study, in parametric analysis, Iran, Ireland, North Macedonia, Angola, and Pakistan were promising exporting countries, and in nonparametric analysis, Qatar, Luxembourg, Ireland, North Macedonia and Pakistan were analyzed as promising exporting countries. There were differences in some countries in the two models. The results of this study revealed that the export competitiveness of South Korea's information and communication and home appliance industries in GVC was not high compared to the size of exports, and thus showed that exports could be further reduced. In addition, this study is meaningful in that it proposed a method to find promising export countries by considering GVC networks with other countries as a way to increase export competitiveness. This study showed that, from a policy point of view, the international trade network of the information communication and home appliance industries has an important mutual relationship, and although transferability is high, it may not be easily expanded to a three-party relationship. In addition, it was confirmed that South Korea's export competitiveness or status was lower than the export size ranking. This paper suggested that in order to improve the low out-degree centrality, it is necessary to increase exports to Italy or Poland, which had significantly higher in-degrees. In addition, we argued that in order to improve the centrality of out-closeness, it is necessary to increase exports to countries with particularly high in-closeness. In particular, it was analyzed that Morocco, UAE, Argentina, Russia, and Canada should pay attention as export countries. This study also provided practical implications for companies expecting to expand exports. The results of this study argue that companies expecting export expansion need to pay attention to countries with a relatively high potential for export expansion compared to the existing export volume by country. In particular, for companies that export daily necessities, countries that should pay attention to the population are presented, and for companies that export high-end or durable products, countries with high GDP, or purchasing power, relatively low exports are presented. Since the process and results of this study can be easily extended and applied to other industries, it is also expected to develop services that utilize the results of this study in the public sector.