As one of the more dynamic economies of Southeast Asia, the Republic of Korea (known generally as South Korea) has achieved an incredible record of growth. Three decades ago, its GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Today its GDP per capita is seven times that of India, 13 times that of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (North Korea), and comparable to the lesser economies of the European Union. This success through the late 1980s was achieved by a system of close ties between government and business, including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labour effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods, and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. The Asian financial crisis of 1997-99 exposed certain longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model, including high debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. By 1999, it had recovered financial stability, turning a substantial decline in 1998 into strong growth in 1999. Seoul has also pressed the country's largest business groups to swap subsidiaries to promote specialization, and the administration has directed many of the mid-sized conglomerates into debt-workout programmes with creditor banks. The major economic challenge for the next several years presumably is the maintenance of the pace of market reforms to restore the old growth pattern.
South Koreas global imports grew rapidly in 2000. Exports increased 20.1% to US$ 172 600 million, the economy grew by more than 9% in 2000, and some steps have been taken to create a more open, market-oriented economy by breaking linkages between governments, banks and chaebol (conglomerates).
Korea did not bind any tariffs for fish products in the Uruguay Round. Its applied tariffs for fish products are 10% for frozen whole fish and frozen fillets. Otherwise the tariffs are 20%.
Under its Uruguay Round commitment, Korea also established tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) intended to either provide minimum access to a previous market or maintain pre-Uruguay access. In-quota tariff rates are zero or very low, but over-quota rates on some products are prohibitive. Duties are still very high on many high-value agricultural products, including fishery products.
Most imported goods no longer require government approval, but some products, mostly agricultural sector items, face import restrictions, such as TRQs with prohibitive over-quota tariffs. Korea implements quantitative restrictions through its import licensing system.
The lack of transparency in rulemaking and in Koreas regulatory system continues to hamper a foreign firms ability to compete in the Korean market. Many Korean trade-related laws and regulations lack specificity. Imported food products remain particularly susceptible to capricious interpretation of ambiguously worded labelling and product categorization standards.
Commodity Balance (1996, preliminary, excluding aquatic plants)
|
Production |
Imports |
Exports |
Total food supply |
Per capita supply |
000 t live weight |
kg |
||||
Fish for direct human consumption |
2 252 |
618 |
607 |
2 263 |
50 |
Non-food uses |
520 |
231 |
121 |
630 |
- |
Estimated Employment (1995):
Primary sector: |
347 000, of which 83 052 classified as full-time workers |
Secondary sector: |
N/A. |
Gross Value of Fisheries Output (at ex-vessel prices) 1996: US$ 3 225 million
The Republic of Korea's total production of fish and fish products has been quite stable during the 1990s, though there has been a small decline. The exception was production of squid, cuttlefish and octopus, as well as mackerel and red seaweed, that all increased. In 1999, the major products were squid, cuttlefish and octopus, with a production of 591 087 t, followed by herring, sardines and anchovies (283 726 t), brown seaweed (254 920 t), mackerel, etc. (254 920 t), tunas (213 334 t) and red seaweed (208 610 t). Korea has, however, a varied production of seafood and several other species are important. For details, see Appendix.
Figure 15. Total seafood production of the Republic of Korea, 1990-1999 (quantity; tonnes)
In 1998, the Republic of Korea was the 17th-largest exporter of fish and fish products, when ranked by value, with total exports of 561 235 t, worth US$ 1 250 million. During the 1990s, Koreas exports saw a small decline from 1991 to 1994, but from 1995 on there was a steady increase. This has not been reflected in the export value, which from 1995 has been decreasing, with the 1998 value the lowest in this period.
Figure 16. Total seafood exports from Republic of Korea
As Figure 17 shows, Japan and China are the main markets for Korean fish products, with USA, Thailand and Spain also important markets. Other countries are of minor importance for trade.
Figure 17. Seafood exports from the Republic of Korea, average for 1995-1997, by major markets
Seafood imports into the Republic of Korea in general increased during the 1990s, with a peak in 1996-1997. In 1998, there was a substantial decrease, probably due to the general economic problems in Asia at that time. Koreas imports comprise a number of different products, the main items being frozen redfish, bass and conger, followed by frozen liver and roes, other frozen fish meat and frozen mackerel. The biggest increase in quantity terms has come from frozen fish fillets (including mackerel). Other big increases came from imports of shrimps and prawns, salmon and other high value species, implying a change due more to increased domestic spending power than to trade liberalization. The largest decrease was in imports of fishmeal and oils.
Figure 18. Total seafood imports by the Republic of Korea, 1990-1998
Koreas main suppliers were Russia, China and USA, supplying over 60% of the total quantity imported in 1995-97, with Thailand, Argentina, Japan, New Zealand and the Philippines also significant sources.
Figure 19. Seafood imports by the Republic of Korea, average 1995-97, by major suppliers
Koreas main export commodity is fresh, chilled and frozen fish, with an increasing trend. However, although the quantity of exports has been increasing, the value has been decreasing. It seems that Korea is receiving less, both for crustaceans and molluscs, as well as fresh and frozen fish.
As mentioned earlier, Korean imports grew all through the decade, until 1998, when the Asian economic crisis had an impact also on the fish industry. Korea has mostly imported fresh and frozen products, and began to import some prepared crustaceans and molluscs in 1993. This commodity group grew slowly, but almost disappeared in 1998.
Figure 20. Overview of the Republic of Koreas imports of seafood products, by commodity, 1990-1998
Korea import commodity groups 1990 - 1998 - a
Korea import commodity groups 1990 - 1998 - b
Import Quantity |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, fresh, chilled, etc... |
39195 |
61890 |
62203 |
59691 |
82124 |
62318 |
84823 |
85902 |
62407 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, Products & Preparations |
849 |
3706 |
4302 |
6125 |
9075 |
19606 |
39217 |
41995 |
10038 |
Fish Products and Preparation |
94 |
54 |
476 |
1326 |
730 |
526 |
520 |
826 |
1298 |
Fish, dried, salted or smoked |
587 |
52 |
126 |
253 |
571 |
1091 |
1371 |
1529 |
1310 |
Fish, fresh, chilled or frozen |
180938 |
228419 |
204051 |
242692 |
232156 |
261265 |
329561 |
325392 |
254871 |
Meals, Solubles, etc... |
35399 |
40673 |
27828 |
30934 |
38860 |
44234 |
46112 |
42494 |
24804 |
Oils and Fats |
25113 |
23846 |
20184 |
10674 |
12107 |
18280 |
14339 |
10329 |
5734 |
Import Value |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, fresh, chilled, etc... |
85198 |
116558 |
105640 |
105076 |
190157 |
183597 |
251757 |
235108 |
100266 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, Products & Preparations |
3340 |
14676 |
19638 |
34999 |
49584 |
84941 |
122999 |
115815 |
33834 |
Fish Products and Preparation |
665 |
402 |
1658 |
5481 |
5294 |
5577 |
5586 |
7816 |
7173 |
Fish, dried, salted or smoked |
825 |
518 |
1073 |
2059 |
4146 |
4816 |
10860 |
9169 |
6162 |
Fish, fresh, chilled or frozen |
248101 |
396713 |
340231 |
360340 |
431797 |
505269 |
614248 |
610142 |
389915 |
Meals, Solubles, etc... |
17193 |
24393 |
18268 |
18119 |
22123 |
26536 |
32920 |
29632 |
18940 |
Oils and Fats |
9416 |
14969 |
11528 |
11272 |
15350 |
14081 |
15725 |
10191 |
5918 |
Figure 21. Overview of the Republic of Koreas exports of seafood products, by commodity, 1990-1998
Korea export commodity groups 1990 - 1998 - a
Korea export commodity groups 1990 - 1998 - b
Export Quantity |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, fresh, chilled, etc... |
68669 |
61154 |
54152 |
43360 |
43154 |
93014 |
90110 |
177559 |
151940 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, Products & Preparations |
18486 |
17465 |
16272 |
19574 |
16504 |
15287 |
15095 |
10102 |
14446 |
Fish Products and Preparation |
52099 |
41769 |
36943 |
38323 |
47863 |
51198 |
62668 |
67617 |
62335 |
Fish, dried, salted or smoked |
4015 |
3242 |
2688 |
2955 |
2177 |
1780 |
1787 |
2088 |
2116 |
Fish, fresh, chilled or frozen |
265086 |
310547 |
282499 |
215054 |
198989 |
219570 |
226622 |
192741 |
303065 |
Meals, Solubles, etc... |
4996 |
22606 |
11401 |
14475 |
16033 |
21979 |
24211 |
23505 |
24636 |
Oils and Fats |
3 |
379 |
402 |
698 |
1030 |
2529 |
1762 |
1673 |
2697 |
Export value |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, fresh, chilled, etc... |
366003 |
410705 |
372868 |
327849 |
327240 |
398887 |
372490 |
352842 |
332280 |
Crustaceans & Molluscs, Products & Preparations |
116481 |
137679 |
122903 |
176716 |
160445 |
148735 |
142434 |
123095 |
82002 |
Fish Products and Preparation |
188399 |
168724 |
171619 |
167425 |
201862 |
246369 |
274437 |
251503 |
205023 |
Fish, dried, salted or smoked |
29447 |
21566 |
17107 |
17244 |
13458 |
11245 |
10339 |
10828 |
9525 |
Fish, fresh, chilled or frozen |
657282 |
745426 |
665404 |
635024 |
696233 |
744454 |
693552 |
622944 |
602129 |
Meals, Solubles, etc... |
3617 |
5775 |
7874 |
9526 |
10001 |
12955 |
14443 |
13896 |
13254 |
Oils and Fats |
2 |
252 |
368 |
423 |
694 |
1735 |
1367 |
1044 |
1645 |