한국의 대중국 무역수지 악화 요인에 관한 연구 = A Study on the Factors Worsening Korea’s Trade Balance with China

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The deterioration of Korea's trade balance with China is a major cause of Korea's overall trade deficit. This paper aims to examine the causes of the deterioration of Korea's trade balance with China and derive countermeasures by analyzing the recent characteristic changes in Korea-China trade. The temporary factor in deteriorating Korea's trade balance with China is a problem that can be resolved in a relatively short period of time. It can be said that the improvement of South Korea's trade balance with China depends on how it responds to structural problems. First, it is necessary to continue to expand investments aimed at developing China's domestic market. In this process, exports of Korean intermediate goods to China will naturally increase. Second, it is important to find suitable investment items for the Chinese market, such as semiconductors. China is losing its competitiveness in labor-intensive manufacturing, but has improved its competitiveness in high-tech manufacturing such as displays, secondary batteries, and electric vehicles. Third, Korea needs to develop differentiated materials and parts, taking into consideration the fact that it has replaced a considerable portion of imported goods with Chinese products in the fields of materials and parts. Fourth, companies that previously pioneered the Chinese market with cost-effectiveness strategies will need to boldly compete with premium strategies and differentiation strategies. Lastly, if Korean companies are harmed by the political conflict between Korea and China, they will have to make more efforts to improve the quality of their products and services.