Daewoo moved into the construction sector, helping to make the new village movement, that was a part of the rural development program in Korea. The company was also able to capitalize on the growing markets in the Middle East and within Africa. Daewoo received its GTC designation during this time. The government of South Korea offered major investment help to the corporation in the form of subsidized loans. The strict import controls of South Korea angered competing countries, but the government knew that, unaided, the chaebols would never survive the world recession caused by the 1970's oil crisis. Protectionist policies were required to ensure that the economy continued to grow.
Even though the government felt that both Hyundai and Samsung had the greater knowledge in heavy engineering, Daewoo was forced into shipbuilding by the government. Okpo, the biggest dockyard in the globe was not a responsibility which Kim was wanting. He said many times that the government of Korea was stifling his entrepreneurial instinct by forcing him to carry out actions based on responsibility rather than profit. Despite his reluctance, Kim was able to turn Daewoo Shipbuilding and Heavy Machinery into a really profitable corporation making oil rigs and ships that are competitively priced on a tight production schedule. This took place in the 1980s when the economy within South Korea was going through a liberalization stage.
The government during this time was reducing its protectionist measures that helped to fuel the rise of small businesses and medium-sized businesses. Daewoo had to rid two of its textile companies at this time and the shipbuilding industry was beginning to attract more foreign competition. The goal of the government was to shift to a free market economy by encouraging a more effective allocation of resources. Such a policy was meant to make the chaebols more aggressive in their global dealings. Nevertheless, the new economic conditions caused some chaebols to fail. Amongst the competitors of Daewoo, the Kukje Group, went into bankruptcy during the year 1985. The shift of government favour to small private companies was intended to spread the wealth which had before been concentrated within Korea's industrial centers, Seoul and Pusan.