This final thesis is dedicated to the analysis of special economic zones. The main goals of this paper are: theoretical study of SEZ, its main characteristics and outlook of specifics of Chinese SEZs, their historical and modern development trends. The first chapter is dedicated to the theoretical analysis of SEZs from various angles; it outlines main features and definitions; gives analysis of the effects of SEZ on the domestic economy and analyses factors for successful zone launch. It contains analysis of the main goals and roles of SEZs in the economy; describes SEZs in BRIC countries. The second chapter is dedicated to the specifics of Chinese SEZs and description of the Chinese liberalization reforms with the emphasis put on SEZs. It provides description of the main reasons for zones launching in China, their roles and features, investor's motivation for entry onto the Chinese market, the role of ethnic Chinese, effect of SEZs. The third chapter introduces modern development trends of SEZs in China. It describes new types of zones, analyses new growth tendencies, evaluates the effects of the current five-year plan on goals and development priorities of SEZs, and examines impacts of SEZs on the realization of state development programme. The last chapter is focused on the selected SEZs with emphasis on current development trends and SWOT analysis of Chinese SEZs. This chapter applies theoretical knowledge gained in previous chapters on the analysis of the selected zones. This paper, as a result, provides the complex overview of Chinese SEZs, current development trends and their impacts on the Chinese economy.

South Korea is a country that is poor in natural resources and capital and remains behind many other nations in technological development; however, South Korea's unique development strategy has led its economy to high growth over the last three decades. During 1997, South Korea began to experience a serious financial crisis, including bankruptcies of many of its conglomerates, a drastic depreciation in the international exchange rate of the South Korean currency, and an increasing foreign debt. Currently South Korea is struggling to compete with products from both industrialized nations and newly industrializing nations. The current crisis has occurred as South Korea has been engaged in extensive market-opening. Knowledge is lacking about South Korea's intricate and rapidly changing political and economic climate. The purpose of this research was to explore and clarify the interrelated factors that have contributed to South Korea's present economic problems, especially those facing South Korea's retailing industry. The qualitative methodology of "grounded theory" was used in this study. Grounded theory is a general methodology for developing theory that is grounded in data which are systematically gathered and analyzed. Theory evolves during the research process through a continuous interplay between analysis and data collection. This research attempted to discover the factors, or themes, that have affected the South Korean economy and retailing industry. The following factors were identified: (1) foreign direct investment; (2) the price-gap between imported goods and domestic products; (3) South Korea's trade deficit; (4) perceived over-consumption of luxury items by South Korean consumers; and (5) the chaebol, or South Korean large conglomerates. The economic factors that have led to the current difficulties facing the South Korean retailing market are complicated and interwoven. South Korean retailers will have to address these factors in the future, and attempt to find solutions. It is hoped that the knowledge resulting from this will be of benefit to South Korea's attempt to compete in a global marketplace. / Master of Science