{"id":2199246,"date":"2022-10-25T10:05:37","date_gmt":"2022-10-25T10:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/?p=2199246"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:11:06","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:11:06","slug":"why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/","title":{"rendered":"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">South Korea is a modern, highly successful economy that also happens to be one of the most regulated among developed countries across some sectors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Korea Pro<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> analysis finds that the effects of such regulations include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Relative administrative simplicity and a state seemingly committed to supporting small and medium-sized domestic business but less committed to foreign investors<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The paradoxically supportive regulatory regime in some sectors facilitates the flow of goods and supports the trade in services, but also taxes highly (in the form of tariffs)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unusually high <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sipotra.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/The-2018-edition-of-the-OECD-PMR-indicators-and-database-Methodological-improvements-and-policy-insights.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">restrictions<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on access to professional service markets that are countered by price regulation in some areas, generating small or even positive effects for the average foreign investor and even most South Koreans<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In some sectors of the South Korean economy, the regulation does seem to impede investment, trade, gross domestic product (GDP) growth and productivity improvements.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Price regulations (beyond tariffs), restrictions on foreign investment in a number of sectors and command and control regulation probably hurt both domestic and foreign investors. Network industries are a prime example of where foreign investors are hurt by regulatory controls.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.oecd.org\/economy\/reform\/OECD-PMR-Economy-wide-Database-2018.xlsx\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">figures<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> indicate that South Korea\u2019s stronger-than-average regulations are likely to have a deeper impact on domestic producers and foreign investors than most.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_2199251\" style=\"width: 1880px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2199251\" class=\"size-post_feature_image_retina wp-image-2199251\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-clive-kim-6306920-1870x1000.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1870\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-clive-kim-6306920-1870x1000.jpg 1870w, https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-clive-kim-6306920-935x500.jpg 935w, https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-clive-kim-6306920-1255x670.jpg 1255w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1870px) 100vw, 1870px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-2199251\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A large port in Busan, South Korea | Image: Pexels<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In some areas, South Korea is ahead of the pack, for instance in the open availability of regulations and laws before they are put into effect, and a comprehensive (by OECD standards) process to reduce compliance costs and the administrative burden facing firms. The transparency of regulations also lessens the burden on startups.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">South Korea has a comparatively underdeveloped service sector and its involvement in the global trade in services is also relatively small compared to its huge merchandise trade (see World Trade Organization <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wto.org\/english\/thewto_e\/countries_e\/korea_republic_e.htm#gdSchd\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">data<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), but its service trade remains comparatively <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.oecd.org\/trade\/topics\/services-trade\/documents\/oecd-stri-country-note-kor.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">open<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> overall.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Its tariff rates are, however, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wto.org\/english\/tratop_e\/tpr_e\/s414_sum_e.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">high<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by OECD standards, with agricultural tariffs a particular outlier, but many other goods are also subject to tariffs that are higher than the OECD average. This places additional burdens upon foreign producers and investors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nonetheless, some professions include some controls on prices (for architects, notaries, and real estate) and a need to receive separate domestic accreditation (civil engineers, accountants and lawyers). Price controls may benefit domestic and foreign investors outside these industries, but a lack of recognition of foreign qualifications create barriers to entry for foreign professionals. Many of these are sectors that are comparatively <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/issuu.com\/oecd.publishing\/docs\/oecd_stri_policy_trends_up_to_2022\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">tightly<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> regulated within OECD countries generally, however.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Interestingly, some transport (buses) and retail prices (for staples) are regulated or controlled, though the latter has had little impact on inflation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By OECD standards, regulations on the price of staples may be unusual. However, the real<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mk.co.kr\/news\/business\/view\/2022\/10\/932559\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> concern<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the retail industry is the regulation of the opening hours of large retail outlets designed to support and protect smaller retailers (especially market stallholders). Discrimination against large retailers may have a negative impact on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/books.google.co.kr\/books?id=bl9TDwAAQBAJ&amp;printsec=frontcover&amp;dq=big+is+beautiful&amp;hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;ved=2ahUKEwii6sz4sPP6AhVU1GEKHTEdDFYQ6AF6BAgMEAI\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">productivity<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the retail sector (for<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreascience.kr\/article\/JAKO201716463829972.page\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> instance<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), though the evidence is <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/sc.sogang.ac.kr\/hchun\/dd\/chun_jce_2015.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">mixed<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, with smaller firms potentially becoming more<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/361775477_Productivity_dynamics_in_the_retail_trade_sector_the_roles_of_large_modern_retailers_and_small_entrants\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> productive<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_2199249\" style=\"width: 1880px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2199249\" class=\"size-post_feature_image_retina wp-image-2199249\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/catcafe-1870x1000.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1870\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/catcafe-1870x1000.jpg 1870w, https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/catcafe-935x500.jpg 935w, https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/catcafe-1255x670.jpg 1255w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1870px) 100vw, 1870px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-2199249\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Retail is among South Korea&#8217;s relatively more open sectors, Peter Ward writes | Image: Jamie Diaz \/ Pexels<\/p><\/div>\n<p><b>OPEN FOR BUSINESS?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The retail sector is quite open to foreign direct investment, however, according to the OECD\u2019s FDI Regulatory Restrictiveness <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.oecd.org\/investment\/fdiindex.htm\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Index<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Other sectors are far more tightly regulated, however.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The maritime sector is the most tightly regulated, followed by radio and TV broadcasting and the media. The fisheries sector is quite highly regulated, as well as transport, airlines and electricity distribution (the U.S. State Department also maintains a useful <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/reports\/2021-investment-climate-statements\/south-korea\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">list<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of sectors subject to investment restrictions, also see Santander\u2019s trade portal <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/santandertrade.com\/en\/portal\/establish-overseas\/south-korea\/foreign-investment\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">entry<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">FDI restrictions <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.koreatimes.co.kr\/www\/biz\/2021\/08\/602_144208.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">differ by sector<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, including some which are not key growth engines. Theoretically, the country\u2019s electricity and telecoms markets, if they were more open, might be lucrative propositions for foreign investors, but they are largely closed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Generally, some of Korea\u2019s network sectors (energy, e-comms, transport) are, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.oecd.org\/economy\/reform\/OECD_Network%2520Sector-regulation-indicators_time%2520series.xlsx\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">on average<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, tightly regulated compared to most OECD countries. The energy industry (electricity and natural gas) and the railway industry are dominated by state-owned enterprises and\/or wholly state-owned in crucial areas. It is thus not surprising that these sectors would be both tightly regulated and closed to FDI.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The issue with fixing many of these regulatory issues is the absence of concentrated domestic interest groups with an interest in doing so. Professional services are tightly regulated in many rich countries and serve as a form of non-tariff barrier in the service trade that protects powerful and well-connected domestic incumbents.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Conversely, such barriers to entry may also ensure quality control that is helpful for consumers.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_2199250\" style=\"width: 1880px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2199250\" class=\"size-post_feature_image_retina wp-image-2199250\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-troy-squillaci-2525871-1870x1000.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1870\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-troy-squillaci-2525871-1870x1000.jpg 1870w, https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-troy-squillaci-2525871-935x500.jpg 935w, https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/pexels-troy-squillaci-2525871-1255x670.jpg 1255w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1870px) 100vw, 1870px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-2199250\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Telecommunications is one of the hardest South Korean sectors for foreign investors to enter, Peter Ward writes | Image: Troy Squillaci \/ Pexels<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Retail price and operations regulations may appear to be unhelpful for overall economic performance and negatively affect powerful domestic market players and impact foreign investors, but the political interest among smaller-scale retailers and their appeal to the public makes change politically fraught.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Electricity market and media market deregulation is a politically fraught proposition. Attempts to privatize the country\u2019s electricity transmission and generation infrastructure have thus far been blocked by politicians representing segments of the electorate who fear higher prices. Price controls and regulation block investment, but were prices to be deregulated, and the industry to be privatized, it could be an attractive prospect for foreign investors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Power over public and private broadcasters and maintaining their domestic private and\/or state ownership is a vector of political control. It may also make sense from the point of view of national security.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Edited by Arius Derr<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-tags\"><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/business-economy\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Business &amp; Economy<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>South Korea is a modern, highly successful economy that also happens to be one of the most regulated among developed countries across some sectors.\u00a0 A Korea Pro analysis finds that the effects of such regulations include: Relative administrative simplicity and a state seemingly committed to supporting small and medium-sized domestic business but less committed to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7824,"featured_media":2199247,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[24],"class_list":["post-2199246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-analysis","tag-business-economy"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Korea is a modern, highly successful economy that also happens to be one of the most regulated among developed countries across some sectors.\u00a0 A Korea Pro analysis finds that the effects of such regulations include: Relative administrative simplicity and a state seemingly committed to supporting small and medium-sized domestic business but less committed to [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-10-25T10:05:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-05T07:11:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"3041\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2297\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"ariusderr\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Peter Ward\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"ariusderr\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3dff0dfd06b9d9d7f399cfa3fc7ed5db\"},\"headline\":\"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-10-25T10:05:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-05T07:11:06+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/\"},\"wordCount\":982,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Business &amp; Economy\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Analysis\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/\",\"name\":\"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors - KOREA PRO\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-10-25T10:05:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-05T07:11:06+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg\",\"width\":3041,\"height\":2297,\"caption\":\"Roll of US dollar bill notes | Image: Photo by Karolina Grabowska \/ Pexels\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\",\"name\":\"KOREA PRO\",\"description\":\"Be smart about South Korea. Up-to-date analysis on foreign relations, politics, society and economy. Made by the producers of NK PRO and NK News.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"KOREA PRO\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png\",\"width\":360,\"height\":50,\"caption\":\"KOREA PRO\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/southkoreapro\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors - KOREA PRO","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors - KOREA PRO","og_description":"South Korea is a modern, highly successful economy that also happens to be one of the most regulated among developed countries across some sectors.\u00a0 A Korea Pro analysis finds that the effects of such regulations include: Relative administrative simplicity and a state seemingly committed to supporting small and medium-sized domestic business but less committed to [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/","og_site_name":"KOREA PRO","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/","article_published_time":"2022-10-25T10:05:37+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-04-05T07:11:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":3041,"height":2297,"url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"ariusderr","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@southkoreapro","twitter_site":"@southkoreapro","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Peter Ward","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/"},"author":{"name":"ariusderr","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/3dff0dfd06b9d9d7f399cfa3fc7ed5db"},"headline":"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors","datePublished":"2022-10-25T10:05:37+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-05T07:11:06+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/"},"wordCount":982,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg","keywords":["Business &amp; Economy"],"articleSection":["Analysis"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/","name":"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors - KOREA PRO","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg","datePublished":"2022-10-25T10:05:37+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-05T07:11:06+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/assets.korearisk.com\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/10\/igot5onit.jpg","width":3041,"height":2297,"caption":"Roll of US dollar bill notes | Image: Photo by Karolina Grabowska \/ Pexels"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/why-south-koreas-highly-regulated-economy-is-a-headache-for-foreign-investors\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Why South Korea\u2019s highly regulated economy is a headache for foreign investors"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/","name":"KOREA PRO","description":"Be smart about South Korea. Up-to-date analysis on foreign relations, politics, society and economy. Made by the producers of NK PRO and NK News.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization","name":"KOREA PRO","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png","width":360,"height":50,"caption":"KOREA PRO"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/","https:\/\/x.com\/southkoreapro"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2199246"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7824"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2199246"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2199246\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2199255,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2199246\/revisions\/2199255"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2199247"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2199246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2199246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2199246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}