Economic Governance and the Challenge of Flexibility in East Asia

This book analyzes the institutional underpinnings of East Asia's dynamic growth by exploring the interplay between governance and flexibility in an endlessly demanding globalized marketplace. In case studies that encompass a variety of key industrial sectors and countries, the contributors emphasize the importance of network patterns of governance for facilitating flexibility in firms throughout the region. Their analyses illuminate both the strengths and limitations of recent growth strategies and offer insights into prospects for continued expansion in the wake of the East Asian economic crisis of the late 1990s.

Introduction: Governance and Flexible Production in East AsiaFrederic C. Deyo and Richard F. DonerChapter 1: Sources of Success in Uncertain Markets: The Taiwanese Footwear IndustryLu-lin ChengChapter 2: Flexibility under Unorganized Industrialism? The Experience of Industrial Restructuring in Hong KongTai Lok Lui and Stephen W. K. ChiuChapter 3: Governance and Flexibility: The East Asian Garment IndustryRichard P. Appelbaum and David A. SmithChapter 4: Dynamic Flexibility and Sectoral Governance in the Thai Auto Industry: The Enclave ProblemFrederic C. Deyo and Richard F. DonerChapter 5: Catching Up and Postcrisis Industrial Upgrading: Searching for New Sources of Growth in Korea's Electronics IndustryDieter ErnstChapter 6: Politics, Institutions, and Flexibility: Microelectronics Transnationals and Machine Tool Linkages in MalaysiaRajah RasiahChapter 7: Flexible Production, High-Tech Commodities, and Public Policies: The Hard Disk Drive Industry in SingaporePoh-Kam WongConclusion: Network Governance, Flexibility, and Development amid CrisisFrederic C. Deyo, Richard F. Doner, and Eric Hershberg