Skip to content

As South Korea shows, active participation in international trade does not require free trade. Indeed, had South Korea pursued free trade and not promoted infant industries, it would not have become a major trading nation. It would still be exporting raw materials (e.g., tungsten ore, fish, seaweed) or low-technology, low-price products (e.g., textiles, garments, wigs made with human hair) that used to be its main export items in the 1960s.

— Ha-Joon Chang Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism (2008)

Another quote →

More quotes by Ha-Joon Chang

Trade is simply too important for economic development to be left to free trade economists.

Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism (2008)

The foundation of economic development is the acquisition of more productive knowledge.

Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism (2008)

We are not smart enough to leave things to the market.

Corruption exists because there is too much, not too little, market.

Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism (2008)

Are you still convinced that inflation is incompatible with economic success?

Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism (2008)

All Ha-Joon Chang quotes →

Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Ha-Joon Chang (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.