Korea recently pulled through an economic
storm that began in late 1997. This crisis,
which roiled markets all across Asia,
had threatened Korea's remarkable economic
achievements. However, thanks to the faithful
implementation of an IMF agreement the
Korean government's strong resolve for
reform, and successful negotiation of
foreign debt restructuring with creditor
banks the nation is currently on track
to resume economic growth. Since the onset
of the crisis, Korea has been rapidly
integrating itself into the world economy.
The goal of the nation is to overcome
problems rooted in the past by creating
an economic structure suitable for an
advanced economy.
Korea, once known to be one
of the world's poorest agrarian societies,
has undertaken economic development in earnest
since 1962. In less than four decades, it
achieved what has become known as the "Miracle
on the Hangang River" - an incredible
process that dramatically transformed the
Korean economy while marking a turning point
in Korea's history.
Gross National Income
Per Capita GNI
An outward-oriented economic development
strategy, which used exports as the engine
of growth, contributed greatly to the radical
economic transformation of Korea. Based
on such a strategy, many successful development
programs were implemented. As a result,
from 1962 to 2005, Korea's Gross National
Income (GNI) increased from US$2.3 billion
to US$786.8 billion, with its per capita
GNI soaring from $87 to about $16,291. These
impressive figures clearly indicate the
magnitude of success that these economic
programs have brought about.
GNI and per capita GNI drastically
dropped to $340.4 billion and $7,335 in
1998 due to the fluctuation in foreign exchange
rates but these figures returned to the
pre-economic crisis level in 2002.
Overall Exports and Imports
Korean imports have steadily increased thanks
to the nation's liberalization policy and
increasing per capita income levels. As
one of the largest import markets in the
world, the volume of Korea's imports exceeded
those of China in 1995, and were comparable
to the imports of Malaysia, Indonesia, and
the Philippines combined.
Major import items included
industrial raw materials such as crude oil
and natural minerals, general consumer products,
foodstuffs and goods such as machinery,
electronic equipment and transportation
equipment.
Korea developed rapidly from
the 1960s, fueled by high savings and investment
rates, and a strong emphasis on education.
The nation became the 29th member country
of the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development (OECD) in 1996.
With a history as one of the
fastest growing economies in the world,
Korea is working to become the focal point
of a powerful Asian economic bloc during
the 21st century. The Northeast Asian region
commands a superior pool of essential resources
that are the necessary ingredients for economic
development. These include a population
of 1.5 billion people, abundant natural
resources, and large-scale consumer markets.
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