The Evolution Of Economic Relationship Of Japan And South Korea From View Of World System Theory (1948-2008)

From1948to2008,JP and KOR’s economic relation are influenced by domesticand international factors.JP and KOR changed position in the world system constantly,this change affected evolution of JP and KOR’s economic relations.The economic development of world system underwent ascent-descent-ascent threeperiods. From1948to1968in ascent phase, western Europe countries and US，coreareas in world system，and Soviet and eastern European countries,areas outside worldsystem, stood opposite each other, formed post-cold-war world order. After years ofeconomic recovery and development,JP turned a peripheral country into asemi-peripheral country.After world II, KOR integrated into world system,became aperipheral country.This peripheral—semi-peripheral structure relation between JP andKOR promoted recovery of their economic relation.From1969to1990in decent stage, core area accelerated the upgrading of industrialstructure from labor-intensive to knowledge-intensive industry, transferred backwardindustry to JP and KOR and other peripheral and semi-peripheral countries. Inperipheral region,emerging economies in Asia Pacific Region provided fresh bloodinto the economic development in JP and KOR.The economic growth made JP andKOR rising their position in world system,core-peripheral structure relation deepenedJP and KOR economic relation.From1991to2008, a new ascent stage, after breakdown of Soviet Union, Russiaand eastern European countries returned to the world system, JP and KOR expandedtheir investment and trade overseas market. JP and KOR’s positon in world systemtended to be stable,gradually narrowed their economic gap.Position stabilization inworld system made JP and KOR’s relation appear new changes. Two sidesstrengthened cooperation based on Asia regions, but because of similar industrialstructure, increasing domestic labor cost, competition and friction was hardly avoidedwhen JP and KOR intensified to strive for regional resources.It must be deep-seated structure reasons that JP and KOR changed the positions inworld system. And there also must be systematic and unsystematic factors affected JPand KOR’s economy that developed inversely to economic period of world system. JPand KOR’s evolution of economic relation have important historical influence.