Kim, Joon-Gi --- "Laws on Trade in Services in Korea" [2011] ELECD 191; in Chang, Wha Seung; Choi, Won-Mog (eds), "Trade Law and Regulation in Korea" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2011)

Book Title: Trade Law and Regulation in Korea

Editor(s): Chang, Wha Seung; Choi, Won-Mog

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781847209221

Section: Chapter 5

Section Title: Laws on Trade in Services in Korea

Author(s): Kim, Joon-Gi

Number of pages: 25

Extract:

5. Laws on trade in services in Korea
Joon-Gi Kim

1. INTRODUCTION

With the acceleration of liberalization and deregulation and the develop-
ment of the Korean economy, the importance of the services sector has
begun to approach the levels of advanced countries. Korea's trade in
services not only leaped from US$ 50 billion in 1998 to US$ 147 billion
in 2007, but the share of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow into the
services sector rose from 33.2 percent in 1998 to 72.4 percent in 2007.1
Similarly, services, including construction, as well as electricity, gas and
water, accounted for 60.9 percent of GDP and 71.6 percent of employ-
ment in 2006 while 14 percent of Korea's exports were services.2 The
largest service sectors in 2006 were real estate, renting and business activi-
ties (18.6 percent), wholesale and retail trade, restaurants and hotels (13.7
percent), construction (13.2 percent) and financial intermediation (12.3
percent).3
Korea's continued economic growth depends largely on the free flow
of international trade in services. Liberalization in the service sector both
facilitates and stimulates the competitiveness of domestic companies,
attracts foreign investment into the country and ultimately expands the
business opportunities of Korean services firms in foreign markets. Based
upon its relative lack of productivity, the services area can realize enor-
mous advantages by introducing more supply-side competition through
trade liberalization. Statistics show that the service sector's labor produc-
tivity, for example, ...