The service sector is gaining importance in the Korean economy, with its share of service trade accounted a significant proportion of the commodity trade.

However, the share of the service sector in the domestic economy is lower than that of emerging countries such as Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. A series of government regulations and restrictions on service imports have prevented competition and impeded the offering of higher value services.
In this regard, this paper reviews the recent trends in the trade in services in Korea, focusing on the evolution of its structure and the degree of centralization by region. Furthermore, several desirable strategies and policy implications for the structure of trade in services are proposed.