Is South Korea the real investment gem in Asia?

South Korea rose from the ashes of its civil war in the 1950s, when it was one of the poorest nations on earth. Now, despite being a wealthy country, it is still regarded by many as an emerging market.

GDP growth averaged over 10% in real terms in the late 1980s and as the economy has matured, this fell to 5% in the middle of the last decade, to 2%-3% at present. While growth is falling towards Western levels, from a balance sheet perspective, the Korean economy is still strong. External debt is low at 27% of GDP, the current account surplus is 7% of GDP and the country runs a fiscal surplus. Korea's exports have been a major beneficiary of China's economic development - China now accounts for 25% of Korea's exports. These range from traditional areas such as cars and technology to ...