Introductory Speech
Korea-Japan Workshop on the Industrial Productivity Database
February 28, 2004
Kyoji Fukao
Hitotsubashi University
As an organizer of this workshop, I would like to thank all the participants for coming toFukuoka.
Before starting the first session, I would like to ask you to briefly introduce yourselves?
I am Kyoji Fukao from Hitotsubashi University. My main research topic is international
economics and productivity issues.

Thank you for the introduction.
Before starting my own presentation, I would like to make an introductory speech for thisworkshop. I hope that my talk will clarify issues, such as, “why we are here?” “what is the purposeof this workshop?” and “what is the long-run goal of our collaboration?”

This workshop was initially proposed by Prof. Pyo. I think that it was last summer, when hevisited Hitotsubashi University, he told me that he was planning to construct a database for theanalysis of total factor productivity in the Korean economy at relatively detailed industry level. Last
spring Prof. Miyagawa, Prof. Kawai, Prof. Inui, I, and other young researchers here finished thecompilation of the Japan Industrial Productivity Database for 84 industries. Therefore, Prof. Pyo
proposed to have an annual workshop series on to conduct an international comparison of industrial
productivity in Korea and Japan.
Recently, Korea and Japan started negotiations on a free trade agreement. If tariff andnon-tariff barriers between the two countries are going to be abolished as a result, the relative
productivity level in each industry of the two countries will become a very important issue.

When I visited Groningen University this winter, I met with Professor van Ark, Professor
Timmer, and Mr. Inklaar and I found that scholars at Groningen have a similar plan. And recently,
we heard the good news that Groningen University received a large science research grant from theEU to analyze TFP in European countries. In order to examine the potential for future collaboration,
we invited Mr. Inklaar to this workshop.
Fortunately. Hitotsubashi University also received a relatively large science research grant fora statistical analysis project from the FY 2003 to 2007. The project is called “A 21st-Century COE

Program, Research Unit for Statistical Analysis in the Social Science,” or, abbreviated, the HI-STATproject. Therefore we decided to play the role of host for this year’s workshop. This workshop is
mainly financed by the HI-STAT project.

Now that I have explained how this workshop – which, I hope, will become an annual
workshop series - came about and how this year’s workshop is financed, let me talk about the goal of
our future collaboration and the purpose of this workshop.

I think that our long-run goal is something like the following:

1. Construct database for total factor productivity analysis, which isopen to the public,
at a detailed industry level (about 60 to 90 industries),
harmonized among countries so that we can use it for international comparison,and covers the macro-economy so that we can derive macroeconomic implications.
2. Conduct economic analysis and international comparison. For this goal we need tomeasure PPP,
evaluate the equivalence of each labor category,
innovate new approaches, which are based on our industrial database,and compare results of industry level analysis with results based on micro data.
In order to accomplish these goals, we need to carry out the following tasks in this workshop.

1. Understand the details of each other’s current database.
2. Discuss how to accomplish the harmonization of our databases, especially with regard tofactor inputs, output measures, deflators, etc.
3. Decide logistics of future collaboration among us.
4. Decide whether to invite scholars of other countries, such as the US, China, etc.
I have presented my proposals of our goals and tasks in order to invite your comments. Please
give me your comments now and later.
I hope that we will accomplish the above tasks through this workshop and start to share thesame goals for our future collaboration.
This is my introductory speech. Thank you.