韓․日 FTA締結의 經濟的 效果에 관한 硏究

Abstract

From 1990s, Korea has been facing new international economic environment. Korea is rapidly losing its competitive power in the global market due to the enlargement/deepening of regionalism and the rise of China. In November 1998 Ministers of Trade of Korea and Japan agreed to set about a joint-study on an FTA between both countries, to be followed both countries, to be followed by the Civil Institutes' study. I addition to this study both countries started to promote their first FTA's between Japan and Singapore, between Korea and Chile respectively. Japan and Singapore agreed on an FTA in January 2002 which become effective in November 2002, and Korea and Chile agreed on an FTA in October 2002. Korea and Japan who couldn't step with these rapid changes in global situation is facing major crisis. The Korean export market is continuously being encroached by China. After overcoming the foreign exchange crisis, the goals of restructuring, the expansion of growth potential and strengthening the competitive power of enterprise are not thoroughgoing enough, and the restructuring of insolvent enterprise is dull. Japan does not seem to escape from its swamp of long-term depression too. In the midst of long-term deflation with its unstable financial system. the industrial competitive power of Japan is also falling due to the rising China. In this situation, Korea and Japan started to establish FTA on which they can cope with enlargement and intensification of regionalism and secure industrial competitive power for their continuous growth and development. Although the need for Korea/Japan FTA is increasing in economic and political points of view, it is expected to have many problems in pushing it. Korea has rather poor industrial competitive power than Japan and industrial structure heavily dependent on Japan so it is expected that Korea would have trade deficit against Japan as well as intensified dependency on Japan due to tariff abolition, and all of these are giving much concern that Korean market may be encroached by Japan. It seems that Japan would have extreme resistance in the field of agriculture. Moreover, there are many problems are around the corners such as historical problem, objections from domestic interest groups, absence of mutual trust, and so on. Though there are many obstacles, Korea and Japan shall make their best effort and cooperate together aiming co-existence in establishing Korea-Japan FTA as if to pave the way for raising the competitive powers of both parties through industrial restructuring, paying off the past stained with confrontation and distrust, building future-oriented relationship, and establishing the integration of east Asia covering China and southeast Asian countries.