Then, in the late 1960s, Korea began an outward-oriented growth path, using exports as an engine for development. Korea joined GATT in 1967, around the time when it had embarked on the outward-oriented development strategy. While practically every Korean realizes how important exports have been, and still are, to the Korean economy, the fact that imports also played a crucial part is sometimes neglected. Korea extensively liberalized the import of raw materials and intermediate goods so that Korean manufactured goods could compete effectively in the global market.