South Korea, currently the fourth largest economy in Asia, has experienced one of the biggest economic transformations in the past few decades. It started as an agriculture-based economy in the 1960s, and transformed into the 10th largest economy in the world, in terms of nominal GDP, according to IMF. How did they achieve such stupendous success? It was primarily by focusing on their strengths and optimizing’s their resources to build capacity.
From small industries, South Korea wanted to move into mega industries. The Koreans wanted to restructure their economy with manufacturing at its heart. As a result, they created a proposal to set up the first Korean steel mill. The finances were hard to come by and everyone thought that this would be a bad investment. World Bank denied loans to South Korea because they believed that the project was unviable. However, the nation went ahead with the project anyway, and it turned out to be a mega success.
Within no time, South Korea became the 4th largest producer of steel in the entire world. This was a commendable feat because Korea had arrived six decades late to the steel industry scene and yet was able to overtake many established competitors in no time. The three lows of low-interest rate, low dollar rate, and low oil rates contributed immensely to the emergence of South Korea’s steel industry. This was a huge confidence boost for the country, which later sought to build brands that resonate with the global audience. Case in point would be the likes of Samsung, LG and Hyundai,
