Against the backdrop of the deepening China-South Korea Free Trade Area and the implementation of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, this study examines provincial trade cooperation between China and South Korea using panel data from 2014-2023 and a time-varying stochastic frontier gravity model. The findings show that economic scale and innovation capacity significantly influence trade cooperation, while trade efficiency exhibits a four-layer gradient with uneven provincial potential. To enhance high-quality trade development, the study recommends adopting efficiency-based regional policies, strengthening key growth drivers, addressing non-efficiency constraints, and establishing long-term collaborative mechanisms to deepen China-South Korea economic cooperation.

Xiu Li, Wei Liang, Hongxia Dong. Driving Factors, Potential Measurement and Spatial Heterogeneity of China’s Provincial-Level Trade Cooperation with South Korea. Academic Journal of Business & Management (2026), Vol. 8, Issue 10: 57-66. https://doi.org/10.25236/AJBM.2026.081008.

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