Intellectual property rights protection, trade, and GVC participation – an empirical analysis based on South Korean data

Purpose This paper explores the impact of South Korea’s partner countries’ intellectual property rights protection (IPRP) level on South Korea’s trade dynamics and its GVC participation. Design/methodology/approach Through a literature review and an empirical analysis based on two models, the paper studies first the impact of Korea’s partner countries’ IPRP on South Korea’s trade, then investigates the impact of South Korea’s imports from countries having high, medium and low IPRP levels on its exports to third countries. Findings Imports from countries with high IPRP appeared to facilitate Korea’s technology transfer and enhance its GVC participation, thereby boosting South Korea’s export growth to third countries with varying IPRP levels. Conversely, imports from countries with medium IPRP drive exports only to third countries with low IPRP, but still contributing to South Korea’s GVC participation. Originality/value This research sheds light on South Korea’s strategic adaptation to global trade dynamics, especially with partner countries having varying levels of IPRP. Also, this paper has a particular focus on the effect that IPRP can have on countries’ GVC participation.