Last year, South Korea’s gross national income (GNI) per capita reached US$33,000, marking a rebound for the first time in a year. The annual real gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate was recorded at 1.4 percent.
According to the “2023 Preliminary 4th Quarter and Annual National Income” report released by the Bank of Korea (BOK) on March 5, last year’s GNI per capita stood at US$33,745. The figure represents a 2.6 percent increase compared to the previous year, which was US$32,661.
A BOK official stated, “In terms of the Korean won, GNI per capita increased by 3.7 percent compared to last year. With the exchange rate rising by 1.0 percent last year, it translated to a 2.6 percent increase in terms of the U.S. dollar.” The average exchange rate between the won and the dollar increased by 1.0 percent from 1,292.0 won in 2022 to 1,305.4 won last year.
In 2017, South Korea’s GNI per capita surpassed US$30,000 for the first time, reaching US$31,734. By 2018, it rose to US$33,564. However, it declined to US$32,204 in 2019 and further to US$32,038 in 2020, marking a consecutive two-year decrease. In 2021, it rebounded to US$35,373, but in 2022, it decreased again to US$32,661.
The GDP deflator grew by 2.1 percent compared to the previous year. The GDP deflator is the ratio of nominal GDP to real GDP. Last year, the total savings rate was 33.3 percent, showing a decrease of 0.8 percentage points compared to the previous year. The domestic investment rate decreased by 1.1 percentage points compared to the previous year, standing at 31.6 percent. The preliminary estimate for South Korea’s annual real GDP growth rate last year grew by 1.4 percent. The figure is consistent with the preliminary figure announced in January and in line with the BOK’s forecast.
By expenditure category, construction investment and equipment investment turned into increases, with growth rates of 1.3 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively. However, the growth rates of private consumption, government spending, exports, and imports decreased, with increases of 1.8 percent, 1.3 percent, 3.1 percent, and 3.1 percent, respectively.
Despite a decrease in goods consumption, private consumption increased by 0.2 percent due to increased spending on overseas consumption by residents. Government spending increased by 0.5 percent, mainly driven by expenditures on goods. Equipment investment increased by 3.3 percent, primarily in transportation equipment, while construction investment decreased by 4.5 percent. Exports rose by 3.5 percent, led by semiconductor exports, while imports increased by 1.4 percent, driven by increases in petroleum products.