
Aaron O'Neill
Research lead for society, economy, and politics: Europe & global
Get in touch with us nowIn 2023, services contributed around 58.42 percent to South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP), while 31.59 percent came from South Korea’s industry sector, and a little less than two percent of South Korea’s GDP was generated by the country’s agriculture sector. South Korea’s services sector employed over 70 percent of the South Koreans workforce in 2018 .
South Korea’s workforce
Much of the over 51 million inhabitants of South Korea are employed, and the unemployment rate is expected to remain under four percent through 2024. South Korea is experiencing the effects of an aging labor force, with a decrease in population share of people entering the work force, and a simultaneous increase of the number of those aged 65 years and above. Despite that, the country’s economy has remained a powerhouse, growing at around 2.5 percent from 2018 to 2019.
The South Korean economy
South Korea is known as an economic success story; it rose from one of the poorest countries before the 1960’s to a developed country with a high income level. Overall, South Korea’s total GDP was estimated to be approximately 1.7 trillion U.S. dollars in 2019, and is expected to continue to increase through 2024. South Korea is considered to be one of the core economies driving the next generation of economic growth, alongside the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China).
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Key economic indicators
Manufacturing
Services
Retail
Further related statistics
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1 All prices do not include sales tax. The account requires an annual contract and will renew after one year to the regular list price.