GDP reading: The economy contracted 0.2% on a seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter basis in the first quarter, contrasting the fourth quarter’s...
Economic Growth in Korea
South Korea's GDP growth from 2013-2022 was robust, driven by strong exports and technological advancements. The economy demonstrated resilience amid global trade tensions and regional geopolitical challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic led to a temporary setback in 2020, but a swift recovery followed, underpinned by strong technology sectors and effective pandemic management. South Korea's growth trajectory reflected its successful transition to a high-value, innovation-driven economy.
The Korean economy recorded an average growth rate of 2.7% in the decade to 2022, which is below the 4.4% average for the Asia-Pacific region. In 2022, the real GDP growth was 2.6%. For more GDP information, visit our dedicated page.
Korea GDP Chart
Note: This chart displays Economic Growth (GDP, annual variation in %) for Korea from 2024 to 2023.
Source: Macrobond.
Korea GDP Data
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Economic Growth (GDP, ann. var. %) | 2.3 | -0.7 | 4.6 | 2.7 | 1.4 |
| GDP (USD bn) | 1,750 | 1,745 | 1,941 | 1,799 | 1,838 |
| GDP (KRW tn) | 2,041 | 2,058 | 2,222 | 2,324 | 2,401 |
| Economic Growth (Nominal GDP, ann. var. %) | 1.7 | 0.9 | 7.9 | 4.6 | 3.3 |
Economic growth is muted in Q4
GDP reading: GDP grew 0.1% on a seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter basis in the fourth quarter, matching the Q3 reading and below market expectations. Domestic demand was weighed on by political uncertainty after the president briefly declared martial law, while the external sector supported the economy. On an annual basis, economic growth waned to 1.2% in Q4, compared to the previous quarter's 1.5% increase and marking the worst reading since Q2 2023.
Drivers: Household spending growth moderated to 0.2% seasonally-adjusted quarter-on-quarter in Q4 from a 0.5% expansion in Q3. Government consumption expanded 0.5% (Q3: +0.6% s.a. qoq). Meanwhile, fixed investment contracted 0.9% in Q4, contrasting the 0.2% expansion recorded in the previous quarter and dampened by weak construction investment. Exports of goods and services bounced back, growing 0.3% in Q4 (Q3: -0.2% s.a. qoq). Conversely, imports of goods and services deteriorated, contracting 0.1% in Q4 (Q3: +1.6% s.a. qoq).
Panelist insight: On the outlook, United Overseas Bank’s Ho Woei Chen said: “While semiconductor production and investment continue to provide much needed lift to the outlook this year, the uncertainties from US tariff measures and the domestic political crisis will be significantly negative. South Korea’s unemployment rate unexpectedly jumped to 3.7% in Dec from 2.7% in Nov 2024, its highest since Jun 2021 as the fallout on consumption from the political crisis continues to unfold. Factoring in the increase in downside risk, we revise lower our GDP growth forecast for South Korea to 1.7% for 2025 from 2.0% previously.”
Consensus Forecasts and Projections for the next ten years
How should you choose a forecaster if some are too optimistic while others are too pessimistic? FocusEconomics collects Korean GDP projections for the next ten years from a panel of 31 analysts at the leading national, regional and global forecast institutions. These projections are then validated by our in-house team of economists and data analysts and averaged to provide one Consensus Forecast you can rely on for each indicator. By averaging all forecasts, upside and downside forecasting errors tend to cancel each other out, leading to the most reliable GDP forecast available for Korean GDP.
Download one of our sample reports to visualize what a Consensus Forecast is and see our Korean GDP projections.
Want to get access to the full dataset of Korean GDP forecasts? Send an email to info@focus-economics.com.
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