Economy of South Korea

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Economy of South Korea

Seoul, the capital and largest city of South Korea
Currency	South Korean won (KRW, ₩)
Fiscal year	Calendar year
Trade organizations	APEC, WTO, RCEP, OECD, G-20
Country group	Advanced economy[1] High-income economy[2]
Statistics
Population	51,628,117 (2022)
GDP	$1.870 trillion (nominal; 2024)[3] $3.260 trillion (PPP; 2024)[3]
GDP rank	12th (nominal, 2024) 14th (PPP, 2024)
GDP growth	1.4% (2023) 2.3% (2024)
GDP per capita	$36,132 (nominal; 2024)[3] $62,960 (PPP; 2024)[3]
GDP per capita rank	30th (nominal, 2024) 26th (PPP, 2024)
GDP by sector	agriculture: 1.6% industry: 31.6% services: 58.4% (2023 est.)[4]
Inflation (CPI)	2.5% (2024)[3]
Population below poverty line	14.4% (2016 est.)[4]
Gini coefficient	35.5 medium (2017)[5]
Human Development Index	0.929 very high (2022)[6] (19th) 0.841 very high IHDI (2022, 20th)[6]
Corruption Perceptions Index	63 out of 100 points (2023, 32nd rank)
Labor force	28,466,640 (2020, ILO)[7] 65.8% employment rate (2020)[8]
Labor force by occupation	agriculture: 4.8% industry: 24.6% services: 70.6% (2017 est.)[4]
Unemployment	3.7% (September 2020)[9] 11.5% youth unemployment (15 to 24-year-olds, September 2020)[10]
Average gross salary	3,796,000 ₩ / US$2,707 monthly[11] (2024 August)
Average net salary	3,137,217 ₩ / US$2,237 monthly[12] (2024 August)
Main industries	Electronics telecommunications automobile production chemicals shipbuilding steel
External
Exports	$632.4 billion (2023)[13]
Export goods	Integrated Circuits 15.35% Machinery 12.81% Vehicles and their parts 11.34% Mineral Fuels 7.01% Plastics 5.86% Iron and Steel 4.23% Instruments and Apparatus 4.16% Organic Chemicals 3.85% Others 35.39% (2019)[14]
Main export partners	United States 24.6%  China 23.9%  Hong Kong 7.6%  Vietnam 11.4%  European Union 11.3%  Taiwan 7.4%  Japan 5.3% (June 2024)[13]
Imports	$642.6 billion (2023)[13]
Import goods	Mineral Fuels 25.01% Machinery 9.17% Integrated Circuits 7.08% Instruments and Apparatus 4.88% Vehicles and their parts 3.23% Ores, Slags and Ash 3.13% Iron and Steel 3.02% Organic Chemicals 2.62% Others 41.86% (2019)[14]
Main import partners	China 30.1%  European Union 15.5%  United States 15.1%  Japan 9.7%  Saudi Arabia 6.6%  Australia 6.5%  Vietnam 6.1%  Taiwan 6.0% (June 2024)[13]
FDI stock	$230.6 billion (31 December 2017 est.)[4] Abroad: $344.7 billion (31 December 2017 est.)[4]
Current account	$68 billion (2020)[8]
Gross external debt	$542.4 billion (2020)[15]
Public finances
Government debt	39.8% of GDP (2020)[16]
Budget balance	-3.5% of GDP (2020)[16]
Revenues	$428.7 billion (2020)[16]
Expenses	$456.5 billion (2020)[16]
Economic aid	ODA, $2.4 Billion (donor) (2018) aid to North Korea excluded
Credit rating	Standard & Poor's:[17] AA- (Domestic) AA- (Foreign) AA (T&C Assessment) Outlook: Stable[18] Moody's:[18] Aa2 Outlook: Stable Fitch:[18] AA- Outlook: Stable
Foreign reserves	$458.700 billion (July 2021 est.)[4]
All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars.

The economy of South Korea is a highly developed mixed economy.^[19][20][21] By nominal GDP, the economy was worth ₩2.61 quadrillion (US$1.87 trillion). It has the 4th largest economy in Asia and the 12th largest in the world as of 2024.^[3] South Korea is notable for its rapid economic development from an underdeveloped nation to a developed, high-income country in a few decades. This economic growth has been described as the Miracle on the Han River,^[22] which has allowed it to join the OECD and the G20. It is included in the group of Next Eleven countries as having the potential to play a dominant role in the global economy by the middle of the 21st century.^[23] Among OECD members, South Korea has a highly efficient and strong social security system; social expenditure stood at roughly 15.5% of GDP.^[24][25][26] South Korea spends around 4.93% of GDP on advance research and development across various sectors of the economy.^[27][28]

South Korea's education system and the establishment of a motivated and educated populace were largely responsible for spurring the country's high technology boom and economic development.^[29] South Korea began to adapt an export-oriented economic strategy to fuel its economy. In 2022, South Korea was the ninth largest exporter and ninth largest importer in the world. The Bank of Korea and the Korea Development Institute periodically release major economic indicators and economic trends of the economy of South Korea.^[30][31]

Renowned financial organisations, such as the International Monetary Fund, notes the resilience of the South Korean economy against various economic crises. They cite the country's economic advantages as reasons for this resilience, including low state debt, and high fiscal reserves that can quickly be mobilised to address any expected financial emergencies.^[32] Other financial organisations, like the World Bank, describe South Korea as one of the fastest-growing major economies of the next generation, along with BRICS and Indonesia.^[33] South Korea was one of the few developed countries that was able to avoid a recession during the Great Recession.^[34] Its economic growth rate reached 6.2% in 2010, a recovery from economic growth rates of 2.3% in 2008 and 0.2% in 2009, during the Great Recession. The South Korean economy again recovered with the record-surplus of US$70.7 billion mark of the current account at the end of 2013, up 47 percent growth from 2012. This growth contrasted with the uncertainties of the global economic turmoil, with the country's major economic output being the technology products exports.^[35]

Despite the South Korean economy's high growth and structural stability, South Korea is experiencing damage to its credit rating in the stock market due to North Korea in times of military crises. The recurring conflict affects the financial markets of its economy.^{[36][37][38][39][40]} The South Korean economy faces challenges due to a declining and ageing population, with a fertility rate among the lowest in the world.