South Korea was dealing with a serious trade deficit in the early 1960s. The domestic market of the country was not really that strong to support domestic industries. After World War II, when Korea was divided by the Allies, all the natural resources were in the territory north of the 38th parallel. North Korea, with its stronger military, wasted little time before invading the South following the US military withdrawal. In the year 1953, the nation was at peace finally, and South Korea began an intensive drive towards economic growth, quickly transforming from an agrarian economy to a centrally planned, industrial economy. Determined to never again go through hostile invasions and lack of vital resources, South Korea became an economic miracle. Daewoo Group was established by Kim Woo Choong in this period of economic emergence. Daewoo, that means "Great Universe," was established in the year 1967.
Even if the corporation's initial share capital was just $18,000, Kim as well as his partners believed that the business would be successful. This proved true, and Daewoo went on to become one of the country's largest chaebols, or businesses. The company had operations in a wide range of industries, including shipbuilding, motor vehicles, heavy industry, aerospace, telecommunications, consumer electronics, financial services and trading. Exports were promoted a lot and a network of offices was established in different countries. Eventually, there were over 100 branches throughout the world. The company at its peak sold thousands of different products in over 130 nations. By the latter part of the 1990s the corporation had become significantly overextended. Daewoo was seriously in debt, and Kim faced charges of corporate wrong doing. The South Korean government ordered the company dismantled in the year 1999 and other businesses bought most of Daewoo's holdings.