포항제철과 신일본제철의 국제경쟁력에 관한 비교 연구

A comparative analysis on the changes in partial and total factor productivity of POSCO and Nippon Steel is made for the sample period of 1978-1998. As of 2001, POSCO and Nippon Steel are respectively the first and the second largest steel producing companies of the world. Using World Steel Dynamics data set, estimation and interpretation of both intra-firm and inter-firm productivity changes are made. Labor productivity is estimated by value-added per employee in steel sector, capital productivity, by value-added per net fixed asset and total factor productivity by value-added over weighted number of employee and amount of capital. Intra-firm analysis suggests that POSCO started from a low level of productivity but steadily gained technical progress while Nippon Steel stagnated and even declined in its productivity level in terms of both partial and total factor productivity. Inter-firm examination indicates that POSCO started to excel Nippon Steel in productivity since the early 1990s but the gap has been reduced. Rapid labor productivity enhancement in POSCO is due to sharp increment of capital intensity and technical innovation.