We use plant output and input prices to decompose the profit margin into four potential determinants of plant exit: productivity, demand shocks, mark-ups and input costs. We find that each of these market fundamentals are indeed important in explaining plant exit. Then, we use differences across...

Using a micro-level dataset of all Korean manufacturing plants, we show that dispersion in the average product of capital are 1) volatile and persistent at the plant-level, 2) small at the industry-level (2- and 5-digit industries), and 3) systematically related to the size and age of a plant....