This paper studies whether the opening of the Korean retail industry in
1996 has positively affected productivity and efficiency in the retail industry
over time. We have found that the productivity of firms in the Korean retail
industry has improved significantly since the market opening and that market
efficiency has increased in the sense that the higher productivity firms have a
larger market share. However, this productivity improvement has not been
observed uniformly among sectors. Rather, it has been concentrated at large
discount stores, CVS, nonstore retailing, and other new venues. The new
venues and concentrated markets have been structural changes in the
traditional Korean retail market.