General profile: Korea, Republic of

GENERAL INFORMATION FOR 2021
Population
Population
Exchange rates
Exchange rate
GDP
GDP
51.830 Millions
1 143.952 KRW/US$
1 798 528 Millions current US$
Land area
Land area¹
CPI growth (%)
CPI growth
GDP growth
GDP growth
(q) 97 600 km²
2.50 %
4.02 %
INTERNATIONAL MERCHANDISE TRADE
More data on UNCTADstat
+25.7 %
Merchandise exports growth rate in 2021
Total merchandise trade
(millions of US$)
2005
2010
2015
2021
Merchandise exports
284 419
466 384
526 757
644 400
Merchandise imports
261 238
425 212
436 499
615 093
Merchandise trade balance
23 181
41 172
90 258
29 307
Export structure by product group in 2021
(as % of total exports)
5 %5 %87 %87 %7 %7 %
Top 5 partners in 2021
(exports, millions of US$)
162 91596 30856 72937 46830 062162 91596 30856 72937 46830 062
INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN SERVICES
More data on UNCTADstat
Total trade in services²
(millions of US$)
2005
2010
2015
2021
Services exports
50 730
82 949
97 499
(e) 122 741
Services imports
59 861
96 922
112 124
(e) 127 120
Services trade balance
-9 130
-13 973
-14 626
(e) -4 379
Services exports by main category²
(as % of total services)
2005
2010
2015
2021
Transport
47.5
47.0
35.0
(e) 39.0
Travel
11.4
12.4
15.2
(e) 8.7
Other services
37.2
37.9
46.8
(e) 49.6
TRADE INDICES
More data on UNCTADstat
10610297103107101100868175747366636460575951464143929591951011011008988858696104100112119131145150156157169
ECONOMIC TRENDS
More data on UNCTADstat
+4.0 %
Gross domestic product growth rate in 2021
Economic indicators
(millions of US$ unless otherwise specified)
2005
2010
2015
2021
GDP, current
934 901
1 144 067
1 465 773
1 798 528
GDP per capita, current US$
19 522
23 438
28 744
34 700
Real GDP growth, y-on-y, %
4.31
6.80
2.81
4.02
Current account balance, % of GDP
1.31
2.44
7.17
4.91
Exchange rate (/US$)
1 024.328
1 156.460
1 130.953
1 143.952
GDP by expenditure in 2020
(as % of total GDP)
46.418.131.936.432.846.418.131.936.432.8
FDI AND EXTERNAL FINANCIAL RESOURCES
More data on UNCTADstat
+3.4 %
FDI outflows as % of GDP in 2021
Financial flows
(millions of US$ unless otherwise specified)
2005
2010
2015
2021
FDI inflows
13 643.20
9 497.40
4 104.10
16 819.70
FDI outflows
8 330.00
28 221.60
23 687.10
60 819.80
Personal remittances, % of GDP
0.56
0.51
0.44
..
Financial flows trends
(millions of US$)
7 412.87 166.17 125.16 526.46 523.66 463.96 573.56 475.46 589.16 602.25 853.75 999.56 978.15 154.94 849.55 200.45 935.25 875.25 134.84 516.24 523.516 8208 7659 63412 18317 91312 1044 1049 27412 7679 4969 7739 4979 02211 1888 8279 16213 64313 2947 0105 4756 52211 509FDI Inwards flowsFDI Inwards flowsFDI Inwards flowsMigrant's remittances receiptsMigrant's remittances receiptsMigrant's remittances receipts
TRADE IN GOODS AND SERVICES
More data on UNCTADstat
Trade balance indicators²
(as % and index)
2005
2010
2015
2021
Balance, % of GDP
2.50
2.97
7.21
(e) 3.99
Balance, % of imports
7.47
6.62
19.75
(e) 10.25
Normalized balance
0.036
0.032
0.090
(e) 0.049
Trade openness²
(sum of imports and exports as % of GDP)
82707780787480921001071079388100767269
LIVING AREA
Population by living area in 2021
(% of population)
Urban 81%Urban 81%Rural 19%Rural 19%
OTHER INDICATORS
More data on UNCTADstat
0.736 %
Share of the total world merchant fleet in 2021
Maritime transport indicators
 
2005
2010
2015
2021
Merchant fleet, national flag (thousands of DWT)
12 017
20 819
17 805
15 725
Liner shipping connectivity index (maximum 2006 = 100 for China)
..
72.68
94.16
108.04
Container port throughput (TEU)
..
18 520 000
25 477 000
..
Information economy indicators
(as % of)
2005
2010
2015
2021
Share of ICT goods, % of total exports
30.00
21.40
21.72
..
Share of ICT goods, % of total imports
15.25
11.88
14.67
..
Share of workforce involved in the ICT sector
..
..
..
..
Source: UNCTADstat (http://unctadstat.unctad.org)
Notes:
1
Land area refers to the total area of a country excluding area under inland water bodies. It differs from the country area, that includes area under inland water bodies, but excludes offshore territorial waters.
2
Statistics presented correspond to the 6th edition of the IMF Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6, 2009).
e
Estimated.
q
Estimated. Data refers to 2020.
Symbols for missing values:
0
Zero means that the amount is nil or negligible
..
Not available or not separately reported
_
Not applicable
...
Not available, including no quotation
#
Non-relevant calculation
-
Not publishable
***
Negative accumulation of flows; Value included in regional and global totals
Abbreviations & acronyms:
DWT:
Dead weight tons
FDI:
Foreign direct investment
GDP:
Gross domestic product
ICT:
Information and communication technology
TEU:
Twenty foot equivalent unit
US$:
United States dollar
Disclaimer:
The designations employed and the presentation of the material on UNCTADstat do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
Where the designations "economy" or "country or area" appear in texts or tables, they cover regions, countries, territories, cities or areas.

UNCTAD strives for the highest level of accuracy and is committed to promptly correcting any errors on its part. It does not guarantee or make any express or implied representations regarding the accuracy, reliability, correctness, fitness for use for a particular purpose, or otherwise, whatsoever, of any of the tables in UNCTADstat.
Generation date: 20 October 2022