Monetary Reform
One of the important policy actions taken by the Park Administration to promote the export-led growth was to devalue the local currency (Won). Korea consistently attempted to provide realistic exchange rates for exports through a mixture of major devaluations and flexible adjustments with occasional time lag. The Korean government also attempted to compensate for periodic domestic currency overvaluation by means of financial and tax incentives for exporters.
Following the exchange rate reform, the government raised the interest rate . The goal was to increase voluntary private savings and discourage the unproductive use of bank credits. To encourage further private savings into financial intermediaries, financial transactions under false names were allowed until 1993 to provide savers an incentive for tax shelter. These efforts to mobilize both domestic and foreign savings made possible a significantly higher ratio of investment to national income. |