In recent years, ,globalization" or ,growing international economic interdependence", which we will use as synonyms here, has generally been understood as offering many opportunities for newly industrialized economies like Korea (here used as an abbreviation for Republic of Korea or South Korea). However, serious challenges are also associated with it. Whereas some time ago, the renowned ,citadels" of learning and policy consulting have taken little notice of this darker side of economic internationalization, recently the perception seems to have changed. In its May 1997 World Economic Outlook, the International Monetary Fund (IMF 1997) extensively discussed the opportunities and challenges of globalization, concentrating on the latter. And the Washington-based Institute for International Economics has begun to publish a couple of books, attempting to ,provide an objective and thorough reassessment of the case for and against globalisation" (Bergsten 1997: vii). The institute, which was frequently quite perceptive of upcoming intellectual and political moods in recent years, suspects that - in the words of its director, C. Fred Bergsten - ,the United States will soon engage in a fundamental debate on the country's trade, and perhaps its overall international economic policy".