Focus on Korea: Introduction

A country to discover…

Considered to be one of the poorest countries 50 years ago, this “dragon” has hauled itself up in record time to become the world’s 13^th largest economy (2007). South Korea is indeed considered as a leader in many sectors such as automobiles, electronics, ICT and biotechnology. Yet, this relatively small country remains fairly unknown compared to its neighbours, but could be an interesting foot-in for companies wishing to penetrate Asia. In fact, it is very open to foreigners: per capita, the value of Korea’s is 30% higher than Japan and 11 times more than China. In addition, it offers an advantageous legal and fiscal framework for foreign companies wishing to set up shop there.

*The four newly industrialised countries that have experienced strong industrial growth in the second half of the 20^th century, namely South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan, are dubbed “Asian dragons”.