Daewoo moved into the construction sector, helping to make the new village movement, which was a part of Korea's rural development program. The company was also able to take advantage of the growing markets within the Middle East and in Africa. Daewoo was given its GTC designation during this time. The government of South Korea offered major investment help to the company in the form of subsidized loans. The competing countries were angered by the strict import controls of South Korea, but the government knew that, independently, the chaebols will never endure the world recession caused by the oil crisis during the 1970s. Protectionist policies were necessary to make sure that the economy continued to grow.
Even though the government felt that Samsung and Hyundai had the better knowledge in heavy engineering, Daewoo was forced into shipbuilding by the government. Okpo, the largest dockyard in the globe was not a responsibility that Kim was wanting. He stated numerous times that the government of Korea was stifling his entrepreneurial instinct by forcing him to undertake actions based on duty rather than profit. In spite of his reluctance, Kim was able to turn Daewoo Shipbuilding and Heavy Machinery into a successful corporation manufacturing ships and oil rigs that are competitively priced on a tight production timetable. This took place during the 1980s when the economy in South Korea was experiencing a liberalization stage.
The government throughout this time was lessening its protectionist measures that helped to fuel the rise of small businesses and medium-sized companies. Daewoo had to rid two of its textile companies at this time and the shipbuilding industry was beginning to attract more foreign competition. The objective of the government was to shift to a free market economy by encouraging a more efficient allocation of resources. Such a policy was meant to make the chaebols more aggressive in their worldwide dealings. Then again, the new economic climate caused some chaebols to fail. The Kukje Group, one of Daewoo's competitors, went into bankruptcy during the year 1985. The shift of government favour to small private companies was meant to spread the wealth that had previously been concentrated in Korea's industrial centers, Seoul and Pusan.