• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.131-144
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• 2019

Purpose - The purpose of this study was to investigate market power of soybeans exported by the United States to Korea. Particularly, this paper considered dichotomous characteristics of genetically modified (GM) soybeans and non-GM soybeans and conducted empirical analysis of these two segregated soybean markets to understand key tenets of market power in international soybean trade. Design/methodology - The difference in market power between GM and non-GM soybeans was analyzed using Residual Demand Elasticity (RDE) and Residual Supply Elasticity (RSE) models over the period of 2008~2018. RDE and RSE models under an imperfect competition condition were used to estimate market margins and determine whether GM and non-GM exporters or importers exercised market power in the destination market. Findings - Empirical results suggested that the U.S. had a market power on both GM and non-GM soybean exports. GM exports had greater market power than non-GM exports (14% vs. 9%). By contrast, Korea showed an inability to grab market margin or exert market power in soybean imports. Both export supply by the U.S. and import demand by Korea were found to be more responsive to price changes of GM soybeans than to prices changes of non-GM soybeans. This might be due to a self-interested, profit-seeking strategy by the exporter and many concerned consumers regarding potential adverse effects of GMOs in the importing country. Originality/value - This paper fills the literature gap by exploiting market power in both GM and non-GM markets with explicit consideration of price correlations between GM and non-GM soybeans in Korea. A number of existing studies have provided evidence for market power broadly embedded in international commodity trade. However, studies focusing on Korean markets are limited. No study has explored the country's soybean trade. Furthermore, the majority of prior studies have almost exclusively focused on the market power from a standpoint of exporting countries without discussing importers' market structure. This paper also sought to understand potentially distinguished patterns of market power between GM and non-GM markets.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.24 no.8
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• pp.121-132
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• 2020

Purpose - The principle aim of this study is to further investigate the relationship between market diversity and export performance. We examine the benefits and costs of geographic market diversity regarding the number of countries exported to by firms on their export performance. Based on the financial risk reduction model and the entry costs model, we propose a way to incorporate the costs and benefits aspects of market diversity. Design/methodology - To empirically investigate our research question, the curvilinear relationship between market diversity and export performance, we built a secondary panel data set between 2015 and 2019, containing 17,863 observations of Korean exporting companies. A generalized least squares panel estimator with fixed effects was employed to test the hypothesis, and the statistical package, Stata 14, was used. Findings - Our main findings are as follows: As market diversity increases, export performance increases because exporters can diversify and reduce financial risks in export markets. However, the relationship between the two does not grow. As it peaks, the entry costs increase due to the high market diversity, thereby outweighing the benefits, leading, eventually to decrease in the export performance. Consequently, there is an inverted U-shaped relationship between market diversity and export performance. Originality/value - In the export and trade literature, the impact of market diversity on export performance has not been addressed yet, despite the importance of this subject. Many scholars have assumed a positive linear relationship between the two, considering only the decrease in market risks as the number of overseas markets increases, without examining the increase in the entry and management costs. Therefore, our study contributes by providing a new perspective for analyzing the characteristics and outcomes of market diversity.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.42 no.6
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• pp.51-67
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• 2017

This study analyzes the relationship between globalization and income inequality. The empirical model is developed based on Kuznets' hypothesis of the inverse U curve. The effects of factor abundancy and globalization which is characterized by trade and FDI on income inequality are analyzed. 127 member countries of WTO are classified into 4 groups according to GNI. The period of analysis is 21 years from 1995 to 2015. Results show that 3 groups of countries excluding one group that is high income countries supports Kuznets' hypothesis which is the inverse U curve. Secondly, expansion of trade decreases income inequality of middle income countries but increases high and low income countries. Thirdly, FDI increases income inequality of middle and low income countries. Finally, the increase in capital abundancy lowers income inequality because the capital accumulation increases the productivity of labor.

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.217-240
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• 2013

The investment environment in Korea and U.S. dramatically changed since Korea-US FTA. The key reasons for this successful change were liberalization and strengthened protection of investment along with trade liberalization which also brought investment market expansion. As the result of trade-diversion effect, investments between two countries have been enormously increased. Through a FTA with the big economy like US, Korea's FTA network has been largely expanded. Korea further needs to utilize this outcome when competing with other countries in investment markets.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.245-262
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• 2021

Despite the numerous advantages that CSR engagement can potentially offer, top managers may not always be willing to invest in CSR as they are expected to meet expectations of external constituents in the short run. Given that financial analysts' expectations are important short-term performance targets that top managers are motivated to meet, this study examines how performance relative to earnings forecasts issued by analysts affect top managers' decisions about CSR engagement. Using a sample of publicly listed U.S. firms from 2000 to 2016, we find that top managers are more likely to reduce discretionary expenditure on CSR activities as performance falls below analyst forecasts to improve financial performance in the following fiscal year. As performance exceeds analyst forecasts, top managers are motivated to reduce CSR investments in order to meet higher expectations of analysts. As financial analysts closely monitor the firms that they follow in order to publish investment advice to market participants, we find that analyst coverage weakens top managers' incentive to reduce CSR engagement. Overall, this research sheds meaningful insight into the contextual background in which the top managers are situated in when they make decisions on CSR engagement.

• Acta Via Serica
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.67-90
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• 2024

India, Southeast Asia in general, and Siam in particular share a long history of cultural and commercial relations. Located in each other's extended neighbourhood, India and Thailand have a shared maritime boundary in the Andaman Sea. Situated in the strategic position, midway between West Asia on the one hand and East Asia on the other, India and Siam combined played a significant role in the maritime transactions in Asia and beyond. The geographical proximity between India and Siam led to multifaceted maritime interactions and exchanges. Siam was in the Indian sphere of cultural, religious, philosophical, technical, and linguistic influence much before the Common Era. The cultural and mercantile networks between India and Siam are well-attested by archaeological and literary sources. The archaeological findings in Siam and other Southeast Asian countries have revealed the dynamic trade and cultural exchange between India and Southeast Asia since the pre-Common Era. The Takola (modern Takua Pa) area served as a more suitable landing place for Indian merchants and there existed the settlement of the Indian mercantile community. Ligor (Nakhon Si Thammarat), Jaya (Chaiya), Patalung (Phatalung), U Thong, Ban Don Tha Pet, Ban U Taphao, Khao Sam Kaeo, and many other sites in Siam have brought to light a large variety of objects which demonstrate that ancient Siam had close mercantile contact with India as well as the Mediterranean world and China. The paper discusses in detail the cultural and trade links between India and Siam and their impact on the Maritime Silk Road.

• Korea Trade Review
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.293-313
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• 2016

In the East Asian region, the advancement of trade networks is being facilitated, which turns out that economic integration across borders is being advanced due to FTA expansion, freedom of business activity growing through the reform of regulatory system in each country, and the processing of division of labor between processes across borders. Trans-Pacific Partnership(TPP), which is a U.S. led multilateral FTA, was signed on February 4 2016 in Auckland, New Zealand by 12 countries, by which changes in the East Asia Trade Network are also expected. For this reason, this study examined the impact that TPP would have on East Asia Trade Network. According to the result of this study, it was determined that TPP, as the regulation and system which will lead globalization of the supply chain, will change Supply Chain structure and result in a positive effect on Value Chain. This will have a significant impact on the East Asian trade network, and connect to enhanced competitiveness of participating enterprises. In addition, TPP seems to be the basis for realization of FTAAP(Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific) in the future, Therefore, Korea who has high Degree of Dependence upon Foreign Trade will have to pay make political effort to effectively deal with this changing trading environment in East Asia.

• Journal of the Korean Professional Engineers Association
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.28-35
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• 2012

IntPE-APEC Engineer and EMF-IRPE are the key role of Cross-Border Trade in Services at the Korea-U.S.A FTA. KPEA is the Representatives of ROK's registration for the IntPE(APEC Eng., EMF-IRPE). KPEA and IntPE(ROK) are actively promoting to get consulting/engineering services in the U.S.A within Korea-U.S.A FTA frame for the mutual benefit.

• The Journal of Fisheries Business Administration
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.107-115
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• 1986

The United States is the world's leading importer of frozen processed groundfish products, with over two thirds of total world imports. Over 90% of the U.S. groundfish demand is met by inports, while about 2 million mt of groundfish are taken from U, S. waters by joint-venture and foreign fleets. The objective of this paper is to provide descriptive information concerning the U.S. groundfish market and the potential for groundfish resources off Alaska to become a major source of supply to this market. The size of the U.S. market, U.S. imports, trade policies, and catch from U.S, waters are discussed, and a comparison is made between the potential domestic catch of groundfish off Alaska and current U.S. groundfish consumption. The total optimum yield of 2.3 million mt for flounders, cod, and pollock is about four times the round weight equivalent of U.S. imports of these species in 1984.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.103-124
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• 2012

Because the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (Korea-U.S. FTA) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) have an overlapping contracting party, the United States, their provisions have much in common. The investment chapters of these agreements, especially, show many similarities, and thanks to these similarities, it is likely that the Korea-U.S. FTA arbitration tribunal for investor-state disputes regarding the environment will put great weight on the NAFTA tribunals' interpretations of those similar provisions. Since the NAFTA tribunals have already handled many environment-related arbitration cases, their interpretations will help heighten the predictability of environment-related Korea-U.S. FTA arbitration cases. This paper analyzes the environment-related NAFTA cases in which the tribunal has issued an award, which are the Metalclad case, S.D. Myers case, Waste Management case, Methanex case, Glamis Gold case, and Chemtura case. According to this analysis, the most controversial NAFTA provisions have been Article 1102 (national treatment), Article 1105 (minimum treatment standard, fair and equitable treatment), and Article 1110 (expropriation). The NAFTA tribunals applied the requirement of these articles in a strict manner, reducing the possibility of finding a violation. After the aforementioned analysis, this paper proceeds to compare the national treatment, minimum treatment standard (fair and equitable treatment), and expropriation provisions of the Korea-U.S. FTA and NAFTA and to predict the impact that the environment-related awards under NAFTA can have on environment-related Korea-U.S. FTA cases. It is expected that the NAFTA interpretations of the national treatment and minimum treatment provisions are likely be used as they are, but not the interpretations of expropriation, because of the differences in the expropriation provisions of the two agreements.