경제지표 변화에 따른 중소기업 특허 활동 영향 분석

In a knowledge-based economy, knowledge and technology have emerged as key drivers of competitiveness, leading firms to continuously engage in innovation. Innovation is particularly important for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as it enables them to overcome the limitations of their size and achieve growth in both domestic and international markets. The patent system functions as an incentive mechanism that promotes innovation, and patent applications have been widely used as a key indicator of innovation performance. This study investigates the effects of economic indicators such as inflation, interest rates, and stock prices on patent applications by SMEs. Using monthly data from December 2003 to December 2023, we construct a dataset of 241 observations and analyze it using a Vector Autoregressive (VAR) model. The empirical results indicate that an increase in interest rates significantly dampens patent applications (β=- .02), while an increase in stock prices significantly boosts them (β= .09), suggesting that financial conditions particularly interest rates and stock prices play a key role in driving short-term fluctuations in SMEs’ patenting activity. The contribution of this study lies in its detailed empirical examination of the relationship between external economic indicators and the patenting activities of SMEs.