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General profile: Republic of Korea

GENERAL INFORMATION FOR 2023
Exchange rate
Population
Population
Exchange rates
GDP
GDP
51.749 Millions
..
1 839 058 Millions current US$
Land area¹
Land area
CPI growth (%)
CPI growth
GDP growth
GDP growth
(u) 97 600 km²
3.59 %
1.40 %
INTERNATIONAL MERCHANDISE TRADE
More data on UNCTADstat
-7.5 %
Merchandise exports growth rate in 2023
Total merchandise trade
(millions of US$)
2005
2010
2015
2023
Merchandise exports
284 419
466 384
526 757
632 226
Merchandise imports
261 238
425 212
436 499
642 572
Merchandise trade balance
23 181
41 172
90 258
-10 346
Export structure by product group in 2023
(as % of total exports)
5 %5 %86 %86 %8 %8 %
Top 5 partners in 2023
(exports, millions of US$)
124 675116 19553 42828 99125 167124 675116 19553 42828 99125 167
INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN SERVICES
More data on UNCTADstat
Total trade in services²
(millions of US$)
2005
2010
2015
2023
Services exports
50 538
82 949
97 499
(e) 123 743
Services imports
59 522
96 922
112 124
(e) 146 657
Services trade balance
-8 984
-13 973
-14 626
(e) -22 914
Services exports by main category²
(as % of total services)
2005
2010
2015
2023
Transport
47.3
47.0
35.0
(e) 25.5
Travel
11.5
12.4
15.2
(e) 11.9
Other services
(e) 37.3
37.9
46.8
(e) 59.7
TRADE INDICES
More data on UNCTADstat
102100106102971031071011008681757473666364608585929591951011011008988858696104100112119
ECONOMIC TRENDS
More data on UNCTADstat
+1.4 %
Gross domestic product growth rate in 2023
Economic indicators
(millions of US$ unless otherwise specified)
2005
2010
2015
2023
GDP, current
971 540
1 192 830
1 539 212
1 839 058
GDP per capita, current US$
20 303
24 459
30 190
35 538
Real GDP growth, y-on-y, %
4.36
6.98
2.92
1.40
Current account balance, % of GDP
1.31
2.44
7.17
2.07
Exchange rate (/US$)
1 024.328
1 156.460
1 130.953
..
GDP by expenditure in 2022
(as % of total GDP)
49.017.633.345.345.349.017.633.345.345.3
FDI AND EXTERNAL FINANCIAL RESOURCES
More data on UNCTADstat
+2.0 %
FDI outflows as % of GDP in 2023
Financial flows
(millions of US$ unless otherwise specified)
2005
2010
2015
2023
FDI inflows
(k) 13 643.20
(k) 9 497.40
(k) 4 104.10
(k) 15 178.40
FDI outflows
(k) 8 330.00
(k) 28 221.60
(k) 23 687.10
(k) 34 540.60
Personal remittances, % of GDP
0.56
0.51
0.44
0.45
Financial flows trends
(millions of US$)
7 653.07 814.57 742.37 434.87 166.17 125.16 526.46 523.66 463.96 573.56 475.46 589.16 602.25 853.75 999.56 978.15 154.94 849.55 200.45 935.25 875.25 134.84 516.24 523.515 17825 04522 0608 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
2023
Balance, % of GDP
2.42
2.85
6.86
(e) 0.61
Balance, % of imports
7.53
6.62
19.75
(e) 1.48
Normalized balance
0.036
0.032
0.090
(e) 0.007
Trade openness²
(sum of imports and exports as % of GDP)
8391766672767471768895103102898595737067
LIVING AREA
Population by living area in 2023
(% of population)
Urban 81%Urban 81%Rural 19%Rural 19%
OTHER INDICATORS
More data on UNCTADstat
0.832 %
Share of the total world merchant fleet in 2023
Maritime transport indicators
 
2005
2010
2015
2023
Merchant fleet, national flag (thousands of DWT)
12 017
20 819
17 805
18 939
Container port throughput (TEU)
..
19 203 476
25 477 299
30 003 141
Information economy indicators
(as % of)
2005
2010
2015
2023
Share of ICT goods, % of total exports
29.88
20.57
21.00
22.82
Share of ICT goods, % of total imports
14.91
11.20
14.00
14.68
Share of workforce involved in the ICT sector
..
(o) 3.02
..
..
Source: UN Trade and Development, UNCTADstat (https://unctadstat.unctad.org/datacentre)
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.
k
Asset/liability basis.
o
Data exclude C2610, C2620, C2630, C2640 and C2680.
u
Estimated. Data refers to 2020.
Symbols for missing values:
0
Zero means that the amount is nil or negligible
..
No value reported or collected
_
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 the UNCTAD Data Hub 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 the UNCTAD Data Hub.
Generation date: 15 April 2025