Market size of South Korea
South Korea is the 10th largest economy in the world and the 3rd largest in RCEP (after China and Japan) with a total GDP of 1,741 billion USD in 2022 (World Bank, 2023). Korea is also one of the markets with large purchasing power in the world.
Figure 1 - GDP comparison between South Korea and RCEP countries in 2022
Source: World Bank, 2023
Over the past decade, Korea's economy has continuously grown with GDP increasing from 1,339 billion USD in 2013 to 1,741 billion USD in 2022, and the average growth rate of Korea’s GDP in the period 2013-2022 reaching 2.7%/year.
In recent years, under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, South Korea's economy has also been significantly affected. In 2020, Korea's GDP no longer maintained a positive growth rate but decreased by 0.7% compared to the previous year.
Figure 2 - South Korea's GDP in the period 2013-2022
Source: World Bank, 2023
South Korea's economy in recent years has been considered relatively stable with macroeconomic indicators such as inflation and unemployment rate maintained at relatively low levels. During the period 2013-2022, South Korea's average inflation rate was 1.6% and the average unemployment rate was 3.5% (World Bank, 2023).
South Korea has a relative population size with about 51.63 million people, ranking 28th in the world in 2022 (World Bank, 2023). Korea is also in the group of high-income developed countries in the world with an average GDP per capita in 2022 reaching about 33,719 USD/person. With this income level, Korean consumers have a relatively high affordability for consumer goods.
Source: Center for WTO and International Trade
