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