American-educated finance officials tamed inflation. Chiang even kept his military budget in check. It helped, of course, that from 1945 to 1965, the United States gave Taiwan more than $4 billion, the largest military and economic infusion per capita at the time. But, unlike many other countries, Taiwan did not waste the aid. It resulted in the creation of a global exporting giant. From 1952 to 1982, Taiwan’s economy grew an average of 9 percent a year. An island that had but a few paved roads in 1950 became the Taiwan Miracle.
