Economy - overview:
South Korea over the past four decades has demonstrated incredible growth and global integration to become a high-tech industrialized economy. In the 1960s, GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. In 2004, South Korea joined the trillion dollar club of world economies, and currently is among the world's 20 largest economies. Initially, a system of close government and business ties, including directed credit and import restrictions, made this success possible. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods, and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. The Asian financial crisis of 1997-98 exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model including high debt/equity ratios and massive short-term foreign borrowing. GDP plunged by 6.9% in 1998, and then recovered by 9% in 1999-2000. Korea adopted numerous economic reforms following the crisis, including greater openness to foreign investment and imports. Growth moderated to about 4% annually between 2003 and 2007. With the global economic downturn in late 2008, South Korean GDP growth slowed to 0.3% in 2009. In the third quarter of 2009, the economy began to recover, in large part due to export growth, low interest rates, and an expansionary fiscal policy. The US-South Korea Free Trade Agreement was ratified by both governments in 2011 and went into effect in March 2012. Throughout 2012 the economy experienced sluggish growth because of market slowdowns in the United States, China, and the Eurozone. The incoming administration in 2013, following the December 2012 presidential election, is likely to face the challenges of balancing heavy reliance on exports with developing domestic-oriented sectors, such as services. The South Korean economy's long term challenges include a rapidly aging population, inflexible labor market, and heavy reliance on exports - which comprise half of GDP.
GDP (purchasing power parity): GDP (official exchange rate): GDP - real growth rate: GDP - per capita (PPP): GDP - composition by sector: Labor force: Labor force - by occupation: Unemployment rate: Population below poverty line: Household income or consumption by percentage share: Distribution of family income - Gini index: Investment (gross fixed): Budget: Taxes and other revenues: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-): Public debt: Inflation rate (consumer prices): Central bank discount rate: Commercial bank prime lending rate: Stock of narrow money: Stock of broad money: Stock of domestic credit: Market value of publicly traded shares: Agriculture - products: Industries: Industrial production growth rate: Current account balance: Exports: Exports - commodities: Exports - partners: Imports: Imports - commodities: Imports - partners: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: Debt - external: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: Exchange rates: Fiscal year:
NOTE: 1) The information regarding Korea, South on this page is re-published from the 2013 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Korea, South Economy 2013 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Korea, South Economy 2013 should be addressed to the CIA.
$1.622 trillion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 13
note:
data are in 2012 US dollars
[see also: GDP country ranks ]
$1.151 trillion (2012 est.)
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
2.7% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 122
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
$32,400 (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
note:
data are in 2012 US dollars
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
agriculture: 2.7%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
39.8%
services:
57.5% (2012 est.)
25.18 million (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 26
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
agriculture: 6.4%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
24.2%
services:
69.4% (2011 est.)
3.8% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
15% (2006 est.)
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
lowest 10%: 2.7%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%:
24.2% (2007)
31 (2010)
country comparison to the world: 109
[see also: Distribution of family income - Gini index country ranks ]
27.4% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
[see also: Investment (gross fixed) country ranks ]
revenues: $271.9 billion
[see also: Budget revenues country ranks ]
expenditures:
$249.2 billion (2012 est.)
23.6% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 135
[see also: Taxes and other revenues country ranks ]
2% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 21
[see also: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) country ranks ]
33.7% of GDP (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 106
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]
2.2% (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
1.5% (31 December 2011)
country comparison to the world: 131
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]
5.8% (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 146
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
$369.6 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
$1.484 trillion (31 December 2011)
country comparison to the world: 14
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
$1.356 trillion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 15
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
$994.3 billion (31 December 2011)
country comparison to the world: 15
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
rice, root crops, barley, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish
electronics, telecommunications, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel
3.8% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 85
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
$22.1 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
$548.2 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
semiconductors, wireless telecommunications equipment, motor vehicles, computers, steel, ships, petrochemicals
China 24.4%, US 10.1%, Japan 7.1% (2011 est.)
$520.5 billion (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
machinery, electronics and electronic equipment, oil, steel, transport equipment, organic chemicals, plastics
China 16.5%, Japan 13%, US 8.5%, Saudi Arabia 7.1%, Australia 5% (2011 est.)
$319.2 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
$436.9 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 26
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
$137.5 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 29
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home country ranks ]
$190.4 billion (31 December 2011)
country comparison to the world: 23
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad country ranks ]
South Korean won (KRW) per US dollar -
calendar year
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may habe the following issues:
a) They assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
b) The CIA sometimes assignes counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order
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This page was last modified 11-Mar-13