In 2022, services contributed around 58.03 percent to South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP), while 31.73 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).
South Korea: Distribution of gross domestic product (GDP) across economic sectors from 2012 to 2022
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World Bank. (May 30, 2024). South Korea: Distribution of gross domestic product (GDP) across economic sectors from 2012 to 2022 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved December 19, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/375580/south-korea-gdp-distribution-across-economic-sectors/
World Bank. "South Korea: Distribution of gross domestic product (GDP) across economic sectors from 2012 to 2022." Chart. May 30, 2024. Statista. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/375580/south-korea-gdp-distribution-across-economic-sectors/
World Bank. (2024). South Korea: Distribution of gross domestic product (GDP) across economic sectors from 2012 to 2022. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: December 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/375580/south-korea-gdp-distribution-across-economic-sectors/
World Bank. "South Korea: Distribution of Gross Domestic Product (Gdp) across Economic Sectors from 2012 to 2022." Statista, Statista Inc., 30 May 2024, https://www.statista.com/statistics/375580/south-korea-gdp-distribution-across-economic-sectors/
World Bank, South Korea: Distribution of gross domestic product (GDP) across economic sectors from 2012 to 2022 Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/375580/south-korea-gdp-distribution-across-economic-sectors/ (last visited December 19, 2024)
South Korea: Distribution of gross domestic product (GDP) across economic sectors from 2012 to 2022 [Graph], World Bank, May 30, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/375580/south-korea-gdp-distribution-across-economic-sectors/