South Korea

South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (Hangul: ????, Daehan Minguk {{audio|ko-Daehan_Minguk.ogg|listen}};), is a country located in East Asia, in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. It is commonly called Hanguk (Han Nation) or Namhan (South Han) by South Koreans and Namjos?n (South Chos?n) by North Korea.

Economy

Main article: Economy of South Korea

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As one of the four East Asian Tigers, South Korea has achieved an impressive record of growth and integration into the high-tech modern global economy, making South Korea the 10th largest economy in the world. In the aftermath of WWII, GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Then the Korean War made conditions in Korea even worse. Today its GDP per capita is roughly 20 times North Korea's and equal to the medium economies of the European Union. Calculating the GDP with Purchasing power parity in 2004, South Korea joined the trillion dollar club of world economies.

Related Topics:
East Asian Tigers - WWII - GDP - Africa - Asia - Korean War - North Korea - European Union - Purchasing power parity - 2004

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This success through the late 1980s was achieved by a system of close government-business ties, including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labour effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. From the late 1950s to the mid-1980s, South Korean exports grew at a rate of 25 percent per year. The Asian financial crisis of 1997 exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model, including high debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector.

Related Topics:
1980s - 1950s - Asian financial crisis - 1997

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Growth plunged by 6.6% in 1998, then strongly recovered to 10.8% in 1999 and 9.2% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.3% in 2001 because of the slowing global economy, falling exports, and the perception that much-needed corporate and financial reforms have stalled. Led by industry and construction, growth in 2002 was an impressive 5.8%, despite anemic global growth.

Related Topics:
1998 - 1999 - 2000 - 2001 - 2002

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As of 2005, in addition to its global leadership in high-speed Internet service, memory semiconductors, flat-panel screens and mobile phones, South Korea ranks first in shipbuilding, third in tire production, fourth in synthetic fiber output, fifth in automotive production and sixth in steel output. The nation also ranked 12th globally in terms of nominal gross domestic product, trade and exports. South Korea's solid economy is characterized by moderate inflation, low unemployment, an export surplus, and fairly equal distribution of income.

Related Topics:
2005 - Internet - Semiconductors - Mobile phones - Shipbuilding - Inflation

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With Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore it is known as one of the Four Dragons.

Related Topics:
Taiwan - Hong Kong - Singapore - Four Dragons

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Chaebol

A distinctive feature of the South Korean economy is the long-dominant position of the chaebol (government-assisted, family-controlled conglomerates), most of which were established after the Korean War. In 1995, the top four chaebols were Hyundai, Samsung, Daewoo, and LG. Since the economic crisis of late 1990s, the corporate landscape has changed considerably, partly as a result of government reforms. In 2003, only 4 of the 18 largest chaebol remained. However, they continue to dominate economic activity.

Related Topics:
Chaebol - Conglomerates - 1995 - Hyundai - Samsung - Daewoo - LG - 1990s - 2003

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South Korea's chaebol are often compared with Japan's keiretsu business groupings, the successors to the pre-war zaibatsu ("chaebol" and "zaibatsu" are Korean and Japanese pronunciations of the same Chinese characters). However, the chaebol are still largely controlled by their founding families, unlike the keiretsu, which are run by professional corporate managers. Additionally, the government prevented the chaebol from owning private banks, partly in order to increase its own leverage over the banks in areas such as credit allocation. The keiretsu, in contrast, usually work with an affiliated bank, giving the affiliated companies almost unlimited access to credit.

Related Topics:
Japan - Keiretsu - Zaibatsu

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