In 2023, South Korea's nominal gross domestic product (GDP) reached approximately 2,401 trillion South Korean won, while North Korea's amounted to about 40.2 trillion South Korean won. Consequently, South Korea's nominal GDP was approximately 60 times larger than that of North Korea during that year. Moreover, North Korea's GDP growth has been notably minimal when compared to that of South Korea.North Korea's economic development North Korea's economy is centered around its capital city and military, with particular emphasis on the expansion of its nuclear capabilities in recent decades. Roughly 98 percent of foreign trade has been with China in the past decade, from whom North Korea imports large volume of mechanical and electronic goods. Food shortages, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, are a reoccurring issue for North Korea, as poor harvests, international sanctions, and a downturn in inter-Korean trade have created sourcing problems - the full extent of this issue remains unknown, but it is estimated that almost half the population is undernourished. Kaesong Industrial ComplexThe Kaesong Industrial Complex project began in 2000 and was a crucial part of South Korea's efforts to improve relations with North Korea. It aimed to foster cooperation between the two Koreas and promote stability in the region. The industrial park, located in Kaesong, North Korea, was intended to provide a platform for small and medium-sized South Korean companies. South Korea would provide the necessary capital and infrastructure, while North Korean workers would be tasked with manufacturing products, aiming to stimulate economic growth on both sides of the border. Unfortunately, the complex was affected by tensions between the two Koreas and shut down in 2016. It has not been reopened since.

In 2023, South Korea's gross national income (GNI) per capita was approximately 47.25 million South Korean won, while North Korea's GNI per capita was about 1.59 million won. South Korea's GNI per capita was almost 30 times higher than that of North Korea.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in North Korea expanded 3.10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023 over the same quarter of the previous year. This dataset provides - North Korea GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

In 2023, South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by about 1.4 percent compared to the previous year. North Korea's GDP growth rate stood at about 3.1 percent that year, achieving positive growth for the first time after experiencing a period of negative growth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in South Korea was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 8,215.6 U.S. dollars (+22.74 percent). After the seventh consecutive increasing year, the GDP per capita is estimated to reach 44,347.44 U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2029. This indicator describes the gross domestic product per capita at current prices. Thereby the gross domestic product was first converted from national currency to U.S. dollars at current exchange prices and then divided by the total population. The gross domestic products is a measure of a country's productivity. It refers to the total value of goods and service produced during a given time period (here a year).Find more key insights for the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in countries like Mongolia, Japan, and Taiwan.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in South Korea was worth 1712.79 billion US dollars in 2023, according to official data from the World Bank. The GDP value of South Korea represents 1.62 percent of the world economy. This dataset provides - South Korea GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The statistic shows gross domestic product (GDP) of South Korea from 1987 to 2023, with projections up until 2029. GDP or gross domestic product is the sum of all goods and services produced in a country in a year; it is a strong indicator of economic strength. In 2023, South Korea's GDP was around 1.71 trillion U.S. dollars. See global GDP for a global comparison.

South Korea’s economy

South Korea is doing quite well economically. It is among the leading export countries worldwide, it mainly exports electronics, automobiles and machinery. South Korea is also one of the leading import countries worldwide. Additionally, it is one of the leading countries with the largest proportion of global domestic product / GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). Its GDP has been increasing for the last few years, while the gross domestic product / GDP growth in South Korea has not been steady but increasing since 2009.

South Korea is an OECD member and a member of the G20 states. Among the latter, its GDP growth was higher than that of the United States or the European Union in 2013. South Korea is one of the fastest-growing economies worldwide. Its standard of living is also considered to be quite high, the unemployment rate, which is one key factor, has been at around 3 percent, give or take a few percentage points, for the past decade. As a comparison, the United States’ unemployment rate was almost twice, sometimes three times as high as in South Korea during the same period. As for employment, South Korea’s rate is almost the same as that of the United States or France, with more than 60 percent of employed persons in the population.

This dataset provides values for GDP reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The Centre for the Study of Public Policy (CSPP) has conducted a series of Barometer surveys in Eastern Europe to gauge mass response to democratization. This project extends this research to the Republic of Korea. Because democratization has become a global phenomenon in the past two decades along with economic liberalization and marketization, this raises fundamental questions about the primacy of universalist theories of change. Much attention has focused on Post-Communist European countries (PCE) experiencing the double transformation to democracy and a market economy and comparisons with prior, albeit less radical changes in Southern Europe and Latin America. The Republic of Korea can add to our understanding of worldwide change, for it has experienced rapid economic success in the global economy, and subsequent rapid democratization and then economic crisis.
While no country is 'typically' Asian, the Republic of Korea has an indubitable status as an Asian country - many centuries of history as an independent state, a Confucian and Buddhist tradition, and in its location between Japan and China in a non-geographical as well as a geographical sense. Korea began industrialization and entry into the global economy after Japan, but it has been spectacularly successful up to the 1997 economic crisis, becoming a member of OECD with a GDP per capita higher than any PCE country. It is a new democracy, as a military dictatorship ruled for decades before democratization began in the mid-1980s, and the first opposition candidate won a presidential election in 1997. Korea has parallels with Germany before 1990, as its neighbour North Korea still has an unreconstructed Communist regime.
This survey is the sixth in a series of New Korea Barometer surveys, which have been conducted by Professor Doh Chull Shin since 1988. The previous five surveys are not held at the Data Archive. More information about the survey series may be found on the CSPP website at http://www.cspp.strath.ac.uk/.
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The questionnaire covers attitudes toward democracy, employment, social capital, trust and distrust, and expectations of fair and honest treatment by public officials. The questionnaire combines questions regularly included in interviews in Central and Eastern Europe and Russia, and also many questions asked in Professor Shin's previous five Korean surveys.

In 1800, it is estimated that approximately 4.35 million people lived in the region of present-day North Korea. This figure would remain stagnant through much of the 19th century, increasing by just one million people over the next 110 years. The dissolution of the Joseon dynasty in the Korean peninsula in the late-1800s marked the end of centuries of Korean isolationism, and the new Korean Empire then opened itself to foreign trade and influence. By the start of the 20th century, the region of North Korea had a population of just over five million. This growth would increase dramatically following the annexation of the Korean peninsula by Japan in 1910, as extensive industrialization and modernization efforts would result in the population of North Korea doubling from just over five million at the turn of the century, to over ten and a half million by the start of the Korean War in 1950. The Korean War Following Japan's defeat in the Second World War, the Korean Peninsula was split along the 38th parallel, with a Soviet-backed totalitarian government established in the north, and a U.S.-backed authoritarian government in the south. Neither government recognized the legitimacy of the other, and an escalation of tensions saw the North invade the South in June 1950. By 1953, the North's population dropped below ten million. It is estimated that there were approximately three million total fatalities in the war, with North Korea having the largest share of fatalities of all forces involved; however, the North's isolationist and secretive policies have made it difficult to calculate the full impact of the war on the North's population. Most modern estimates suggest that more than 1.5 million North Koreans died or went missing over these three years. Following the establishment of an armistice between North and South Korea in 1953, the population of the newly-formed Democratic People's Republic of North Korea would begin to rise sharply, from 10 million at the time of armistice to almost 15 million in 1970, just twenty years later. North Korea today North Korea's population has increased in each year since the war's end, however, the rate of growth decreased in the late 1970s, as a severe economic crisis and a resulting lack of foreign technology would lead to a scaling back of many of social welfare programs for the country’s citizens. Growth would slow even further following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, as the loss of Soviet foreign aid would send the North Korean economy into a sharp decline. In the 1990s, a series of flooding, droughts, famine and economic mismanagement led to the deaths of between 500,000 to 600,000* North Koreans. Recent years have seen an improvement in political relations between both the North and South, and even sporadic improvements with the U.S., which could lead to a less-isolated North Korea in the future; however, the continued testing of nuclear weapons and allegations of widespread human rights violations have drawn widespread criticism from the international community. In 2020, it is estimated that approximately 25.8 million people reside in North Korea.