한국 희토류산업의 국제교역구조와 정책적 시사점

Analysis on the International Trade Structure of Korea s Rare-earth Industry

The purpose of this article is to analyze international trade structure of Korea s rare earth. Rare earth includes 9 goods such as cerium groups, etc.. Statistical data were obtained from the homepage of Korea Customs Service for the period 2004-2013. Main findings can be summarized as follows: First, while China s export controls on rare earth are being strengthened, rare earth is growing in importance as an international issue. Second, due to the unfavorable positioning in the international trade network in rare earth, Korea is in a difficult position as a price taker. Third, in the inter-national trade of rare earth, any secular trends are not found, and the trade of rare earth is concentrated in China and Japan. Fourth, the trade patterns of rare earth by item are similar to that of total rare earth, but it s income is reduced, and the income gap among countries is getting large. Fifth, looking at the largest trading items, the degree of advantages in each item varies across country, and only a few items continue to maintain the advantages and trading items may not be duplicated in countries. Sixth, while the export-import prices are fluctuated repeatedly in three countries, in recent years export price shows a declining. These findings suggest that Korea should continuously strengthen the national capacity on rare earth, make the long-term plans to secure rare earth on a stable basis, reduce a high dependence on China and Japan s rare earth, secure processing techniques of rare earth, make domestic rare earth prices stable, and maintain a good business environment with a drastic price fluction.