Abstract

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to provide a political registration point for analyzing the economic impacts on the national economy from the REITs distribution industry in our country. The REITs distribution industry was introduced in 2001 to accelerate the corporate restructuring process and advance the real estate market. During its establishment, the REITs distribution industry faced difficulties; however, the industry grew rapidly through interest from institutional investors, thus mitigating the establishment problems by 2006. In Korea, more than 108 REITs were operating as of the end of June 2015. REITs contribute significantly to the national economy. The economic impacts on the national economy of the REITs distribution industry was analyzed using input-output (I-O) analysis with respect to production, imports, value-added, and employment. Research design, data, and methodology - The research used an I-O analysis of the activities of the REITs distribution industry in the national economy. The I-O analysis methodology analyzes the economic effects that influence other industries with respect to one unit of external investment. The data for this analysis were the I-O table of 2013 as published by the Bank of Korea in 2014. Results - The findings of this study are as follows. First, if an external input to the REITs distribution industry is 1 won, the overall impact of the product is 1.3869 won, the import induction is 0.0002 won, and the value-added induction is 0.7656 won. A new investment of 659.9 billion won into the REITs industry was estimated to produce a gross effect of 915.2 billion won. Second, if an external input to the REITs distribution industry is 1 billion won, the employment-inducing effects are estimated at 19.6394 individuals. The employment-inducing coefficient of 19.6394 for the REITs distribution industry indicates that the industry created significant employment-more than other industries-because the coefficient was 2.2 times the 2013 industry average employment-inducing coefficient of 8.8. Third, the investment effects of the REITs distribution industry on production induction, value-added induction, and employment induction are assumed to be large in business support services, financing, communications and broadcasting, and professional, scientific, and technical services. Conclusions - The REITs distribution industry was analyzed as having a strong employment inducing, high value added effect. The REITs distribution industry is an excellent alternative for the government authority to create multilateral jobs. Because the REITs distribution industry has a significant positive impact on the national economy, it should be developed. However, the I-O methodology has restrictions with respect to the fixation and timing of the input coefficient. Follow-up research is expected to supplement the analysis method at a specific point in time.