국내 생보산업의 규모의 경제와 감독정책적 시사점: 푸리에 비용함수 분석을 중심으로

An empirical study is conducted on scale economies for 22 Korea life insurance companies with panel data from 1991 through 2012, using a Fourier flexible cost function developed by Gallant. The test period is divided by three period, pre financial crisis period, financial crisis period, after financial crisis period, and the size is divided by three group, small, medium and large size. The result of adoptability test for two cost function, a Fourier flexible cost function is more adoptable than a Translog cost function in scale economies measure. This study use a Fourier flexible cost function. The study result indicate that there is no scale economies in Korea life insurance industry. but only the large-sized companies have scale economies for period 2001～2012, medium and small-sized companies have no scale economies over all analysis period. The scale economies' existence of the large-sized companies only for post financial crisis period (2001～2012) which is the life insurance companies getting bigger and business cross-overs of financial institutions through financial deregulation means that the large-sized companies can enjoy the cost efficiency with various output composition as outputs are expandedTherefore the large-sized companies need to maximize cost efficiency through more expanding insurance business territory as well as other financial business work (asset management etc). But the medium and small-sized companies try to effort only insurance business territory not to occur scale diseconomies.