• Korea Trade Review
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.205-220
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• 2019

This article recapitulates the recent changes in trade laws, which may be accentuated due to the intriguing emergence of fortified protectionism and Mega FTAs. It points out the need to formulate not only the corporate strategy for enhancing the product differentiation and architectural capabilities but also the public policy, which comprises the industrial adjustment policy to cope with possible negative impulses caused by the digital trade and foreign direct investment. It is imperative for Korea to facilitate the alignment between corporate strategy and industrial adjustment policy as an effective means of enhancing industrial structure by nurturing those linkage effects between relevant forward and backward industries. Given the drastically volatile trade norms of multi-track trade policies, it may be a pivotal momentum for Korea to pursue a paradigm shift of its trade policy with a prime objective of achieving such an alignment between corporate strategy and industrial adjustment policy, which affords increased value-added and the further development of product or generic technology instead of resorting to the misuses and abuses of economies of scale and production technology for the maximization of export amount.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.23 no.7
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• pp.13-33
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• 2019

Purpose - This study empirically investigated whether national distances (Cultural, Administrative, Geographic and Economic distance) have different effects on industries in different ways. Design/methodology - The empirical model utilized industry level export trade data to examine the differentiated effects of each national distance. By using direct measurement and covering 75 countries, this paper analyzes the effect of distances in different industries. More specifically, this study classified the industries into a more-sensitive/less-sensitive scale. Findings - The empirical results showed the complicated impacts of national distances on trade. Trade in industries that are more sensitive to cultural and administrative distances was not decreased as greatly as trade in industries that are less sensitive to cultural and administrative distances. Also, industries that are more sensitive to geographic distance showed a stronger negative impact on trade than less sensitive industries. Lastly, economic distance decreased trade for industries that are more sensitive to economic distance, while economic distance did not significantly increase trade for industries that are less sensitive to economic distance. Originality/value - As the first study to empirically find out whether national distance has different effects on industries, this study updated the measurements of national distance.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.125-134
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• 2021

This study aimed to explore the factors affecting the foreign direct investment (FDI) intentions of investors into Quang Ninh province, located in the north-eastern of Viet Nam. Researchers used two main methods, namely, Exploratory Factors Analysis (EFA) and the Structural Equation Model (SEM) based on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS SEM) to explore and measure the impact of factors affecting the investors' FDI intentions into Quang Ninh province. The empirical analysis used data from the survey of 206 domestic and foreign investors into Quang Ninh province, including representatives of the Board of Directors, members, and management representatives at the department level, with reliable tools (SPSS 26 and SmartPLS 3.0 software). The research results identified the following factors affecting investment into Quang Ninh: FDI attraction policies have the strongest impact on the investors' FDI intentions; it is followed by infrastructure, public services and human capital with strong effects on intentions of investors' FDI; and finally the standards of living that affects the investors' FDI intentions. There is also a positive relationship between all the factors and the investors' FDI intentions. Several recommendations are further suggested to enhance attraction of foreign direct investment into Quang Ninh province.

• East Asian Economic Review
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.67-90
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• 2016

This paper provides an assessment of the potential economic impacts of the Vietnam-Korea free trade agreement on Vietnam, by using general equilibrium modeling. The results show that Vietnam-Korea FTA will increase aggregate welfare for both countries in the long run. The most important gains accrue from better allocation of resources consequent to trade liberalization. All the sectoral differences and changes are consistent with the trade profiles of the two countries, and the long-run results are more pronounced than those of the short-run. In comparison with other ASEAN countries, the CGE analysis suggests that Vietnam's agriculture exports to Korea would especially rise in the long run. However, there will be strong competition in this sector among ASEAN members. Thus, an earlier conclusion of a comprehensive FTA with Korea is expected to be a good strategy for Vietnam, so as to avoid the direct competition with ASEAN members in the future.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.77-96
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• 2019

This paper examines the relation between the skill premium and international trade given differences in the relative supply of skills across countries while allowing the South (developing countries) to develop its appropriate technology. Typical assumptions put forward in the literature state that either technology is exogenously given, or technical change is allowed only in the North (developed countries). I present a model of international trade with endogenous growth by allowing the South to direct its technology. The results show that more R&D is directed towards skill-augmenting technology in the North than in the South, in sectors with the same skill-intensity. Technical change induced by lowering trade costs can increase the skill premium in both the North and the South. This result can explain the empirical observation that the skill premium has increased within many developing countries after they experienced trade liberalization. Finally, the model predicts larger gains from trade compared with the model where technical change is either not allowed, or allowed only in the North.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.1217-1230
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• 2021

Using a multinomial logit model with the panel-data set of Vietnam manufacturing firms, this paper investigates the impacts of foreign direct investment (FDI) - small and medium enterprises (SMEs) linkages and other factors on SMEs' participation in the global value chain (GVC). We consider GVC firms are those engaging in any of the three modes including (i) using domestic inputs to export (D2E), (ii) using imported inputs to produce for the domestic market (I2P), (iii) using imported inputs to export (I2E). We discover that FDI-SME linkages statistically encourage Vietnamese SMEs to integrate into the GVC via I2P and I2E, while no statistical association between FDI-SME linkage and D2E participation is found. GVCs participation likelihood is also positively correlated with the introduction of new product introduction. The establishment of firms' production facilities in industrial zones and foreign ownership are both reported to be significantly decisive factors to SMEs' decisions on GVC participation. Besides, there is a strong association between firms' attributes, i.e. employment, capital intensity as well as financial access, and their participation in the GVC. Local governance quality (proxied by the Provincial Competitiveness Index) and the share of skilled labor at the province-level can facilitate firms' integration into GVCs, while greater market concentration may be a hurdle to such potential.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.115-127
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• 2019

In recent years, the Indian market has gained worldwide attention in the global trading business environment. Korean companies are also seeking to enter the indian market, and their foreign trade investment strategy is based on the Global Value Chain(GVC). In this study, we examine difference from traditional investment strategy to GVC investment strategy in the age of 4IR(fourth industrial revolution) through using POLS model(pooled least square), FEM(fixed effect model), and REM(randomized effect model). Based on the analysis of 84 monthly data related to the FDI and international trade effects between Korea and India, the following results were found. As Korean companies increased their share of export to the Indian market and export to the Indian market, the number of new companies directly invested in overseas market increased. However, the amount of import into the Indian market was relatively low in relation to the number of new companies directly in overseas markets. As a result of analyzing the investment strategy of the GVC in India, the GVC has shifted from manufacturing to process upgrading to enter the GVC on Smile Curve.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.313-324
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• 2022

The Chinese outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) involves various bilateral trade agreements and regional agreements signed between China and other countries. This study examines the impact of Chinese OFDI in ASEAN-5 countries through ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand from 2000 to 2016. This study attempts to address three research objectives. The first is to examine the motives for China's investment in ASEAN-5. The second is to explore the different impacts of China's investment across countries. The third is to investigate whether the OFDI conducted by state-owned enterprises (SOEs) will produce different impacts on the firm's efficiency score. Using the DEA approach, this study finds evidence that the overall Chinese OFDI is relatively efficient. We find that the estimated efficiency score of this OFDI has improved in pre- and post ACFTA where a higher overall efficiency score was reported when comparing pre- and post ACFTA signing for both SOEs and NSOEs. Finally, China's parent firms' efficiencies showed higher scores among NSOEs compared to SOEs after the signing of ACFTA for all ASEAN countries except Malaysia. We highlight that the country's institutional infrastructure, earlier investment presence, and diplomatic ties help in shaping an effective trade agreement.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.233-254
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• 2022

Although there is growing literature evidence of linkages between global value chains (GVCs) and foreign direct investment (FDI), the results are mixed and ambiguous by geographic dimension, time period and sectoral scope. Moreover, bilateral approaches on these connections have been rarely analyzed. In this context, we investigate the effect of bilateral greenfield FDI and cross-border M&A on GVC linkages between host countries and source countries. We match three-year averages of bilateral FDI and UNCTAD-Eora GVC value-added data from 2005 to 2019 between 37 OECD sources and 176 host countries (37 OECD versus 139 non-OECD countries). In the structural gravity model, the empirical specification includes bilateral and country-period fixed effects and uses a Poisson Pseudo-Maximum Likelihood (PPML) estimator. We find that greenfield and M&A FDI promote forward and backward GVC linkage for all sectors between OECD countries, whereas greenfield FDI promotes backward GVC linkage between OECD and non-OECD countries. In addition, the results indicate that the degree of influence of GVCs by FDI flows is greater for forward GVC than backward GVC among OECD countries.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.25-43
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• 2022

Purpose - This study is to investigate the direct and moderating effect of intangible variable like economic freedom to facilitating factors on FDI(foreign direct investment) inflows and the difference of facilitating factors by the stage of economic development. Design/methodology/approach - Fixed-effect panel regression analysis with 19-year macro economic data from 2000 to 2019 including economic freedom index from Fraser Institute in 13 developed and 15 developing countries was used. Research implications or Originality - In analysis of direct effect of 5 sectors in economic freedom, the influence of economic freedom was shown weaker than other macro economic factors on FDI inflows, which indicates that actual development of economic factors are more important. The effect of economic freedom on FDI inflows at the stage of economic development differed. In developed countries, human capital, GDP, export, free trade and regulation affected FDI inflows in decreasing order, as did human capital, GDP, consumption expenditure, export, investment expenditure, government expenditure, free trade and sound money in developing countries. In analysis of moderating effect of economic freedom, a domestic and international market size, a flexible labor market which can provide a cheaper good human resources and government expenditures for improving social infrastructure under free economic environment facilitated FDI inflows. However, the statistical significance of moderating effect on export was not shown, which indicates that economic freedom policy itself without actual improvement of exports could not attract FDI inflows.