Charting South Korea s Economy, 1H 2017 Designed to help executives interpret economic numbers and incorporate them into company s planning. Publication Date: January 3 rd, 2017 Next Issue: To be published on July 3 rd, 2017
HELPING EXECUTIVES AROUND THE WORLD INTERPRET ECONOMIC NUMBERS Argentina Australia Brazil Brunei Cambodia Canada Chile China Hong Kong India Indonesia Laos Malaysia Mexico Myanmar New Zealand Peru Philippines Russia Singapore South Africa South Korea Taiwan Thailand Turkey United Kingdom United States Vietnam
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ECONOMIC PROFILE ECONOMIC OUTLOOK Structure Competitiveness Development Growth Stability South Korea is the 4 th largest economy in Asia and 11 th largest in the world South Korea is a medium size country with population of around 51 million Due to a rather low population growth rate, South Korea has an unfavorable demographic structure with fast shrinking working age group South Korea s economy is predominantly service based driven by both private consumption and export South Korea is one of the pioneers of Asia s export led growth model Almost half of South Korea s economy is concentrated in the Capital Region but Ulsan has the highest GDP per capita Economic Structure Part of the country s economic profile, economic structure section gives readers useful views to understand what matters for the South Korea s economy. 5
South Korea is the 4 th largest economy in Asia and 11 th largest in the world 2015 GDP USD billion, Market Exchange Rate US 18,037 China 11,182 Indonesia 859.0 Japan 4,124 Germany 3,365 Thailand 395.3 UK 2,858 Malaysia 296.3 ASEAN* 2,433 Singapore 292.7 France 2,420 Philippines 292.5 India 2,073 Italy 1,816 Vietnam 191.5 Brazil* 1,773 Myanmar 62.9 Canada 1,551 South Korea 1,378 Cambodia* 17.8 Russia 1,326 Brunei 12.9 Australia 1,225 Laos* 12.6 Spain 1,200 Mexico 1,144 Measuring the size of an economy Size of any economy is usually measured by calculating its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time. To compare GDP internationally, there is a need to convert value in local currencies to one main currency, normally USD. There are two popular exchange rate to be used. The first one is the official exchange rate for that particular period. The second one is the so called Purchasing Power Parity exchange rate, which takes into account the difference in living expenses between countries. The first method is more popular in comparing the size of each economy. Size of South Korea s economy Using the market exchange rate method, South Korea is the 4th largest economy in Asia and 11 th largest in the world. It s 2015 GDP is estimated to be around USD 1,378 billion, which is slightly higher than Russia s. Note: (*) IMF Estimate Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database October 2016 6
Wages in South Korea is closer to developed economies Average monthly wages in Asia and the Pacific 2013 or latest available year (US$) Australia (2013) Singapore (2013) New Zealand (2013) Japan (2013) South Korea (2013) Hong Kong (2013) Malaysia (2013) China (2013) Samoa (2012) Mongolia (2012) Thailand (2013) India (2011/12) Philippines (2013) Vietnam (2013) Indonesia (2013) Cambodia (2012) Pakistan (2013) Nepal (2008) 4,642 3,694 3,419 3,320 2,841 1,780 651 613 565 411 391 215 215 197 183 121 119 73 International Wage Comparison Due to differences in definitions and coverage, comparing average wages across countries is not always straightforward. The chart presents information on wage levels for countries with broadly comparable data, compiled by International Labor Organization from comprehensive National Labor Force Surveys. Wages in South Korea Average monthly wages in South Korea was around USD 2,814, in the middle but closer to those in developed economies. Source: ILO Global Wage Report 2014/15 Asia and the Pacific Supplement 14
South Korea s economic growth slowed down to 2.6% in 3Q16 Real GDP growth Year-on-year, 3Q16 India Philippines China Vietnam Indonesia New Zealand Malaysia Thailand South Korea Taiwan Hong Kong Australia United States Euro area Japan Singapore 1.1% 1.1% 2.0% 1.9% 1.8% 1.7% 1.7% South Korea s Real GDP growth Year-on-year, last 8 quarters 7.3% 7.1% 3.3% 3.1% 6.7% 2.8% 2.8% 6.4% 2.7% 2.6% 5.0% 2.4% 4.5% 2.2% 4.3% 3.2% 2.6% 4Q14 1Q15 2Q15 3Q15 4Q15 1Q16 2Q16 3Q16 GDP growth in the latest quarter Real GDP growth in the latest quarter from major economies in the world sorted from highest to lowest. GDP growth for South Korea s economy in 3Q16 South Korea s economic growth slowed down to 2.6% in 3Q16, which is lowest in the last 6 quarters. Source: The Economist, OECD; Charting Economy analysis 31
South Korea s fiscal sector is very sound with consistent budget surplus and low public debt South Korea s General government structural balance* % of GDP 2.5% 2.0% 1.5% 1.0% 0.5% 0.0% 2006 2010 2014 2018 Projected General government structural balance* 2017, % of GDP Projected General government debt* 2017, % of GDP 2.4 Singapore 105.7 1.4 South Korea 39.2-0.2 Germany 65.9-0.7 New Zealand 29.2-1.1 Euro area 91.0-1.6 Philippines 32.4-1.9 Canada 90.5-2.1 Australia 43.2-2.6 Indonesia 28.2-6.6-7.8-2.6-2.9-3.2-3.7-4.8 Advanced economies Malaysia China United States Japan India Brazil 55.7 49.9 67.2 108.1 108.4 82.4 253.0 Fiscal or Government budget balance Budget balances are the government revenues net of the government expenditures. When compared across countries, it is commonly standardized in the form of percentage of GDP. Public debt Public debt includes direct government debt, debt of State Enterprises and others. When compared across countries, it is commonly standardized in the form of percentage of GDP. South Korea s fiscal situation South Korea s fiscal sector is one of the soundest in the world with consistent budget surplus and low public debt. Note: (*) Excluding cyclical and extraordinary income/expenses (**) Forecasted by IMF in World Economic Outlook report, October 2016 Source: IMF 41
South Korea is one of the easiest places to start a business Starting a business rank Cost - Paid-in min. Procedure - Cost - Men Procedure - Time - Time - Men Women (% capital (% of Economy Rank DTF* Men (% of income Women Women (days) of income income per (number) per capita) (number) (days) per capita) capita) New Zealand 1 100.0 1 0.5 0.3 1 0.5 0.3 0.0 Hong Kong SAR, China 3 98.2 2 1.5 0.6 2 1.5 0.6 0.0 Singapore 6 96.5 3 2.5 0.6 3 2.5 0.6 0.0 Australia 7 96.5 3 2.5 0.7 3 2.5 0.7 0.0 Korea, Rep 11 95.8 2 4.0 14.6 2 4.0 14.6 0.0 Taiwan, China 19 94.4 3 10.0 2.1 3 10.0 2.1 0.0 Thailand 78 87.0 5 25.5 6.6 5 25.5 6.6 0.0 Brunei Darussalam 84 86.7 7 14.0 1.6 8 15.0 1.6 0.0 Japan 89 86.1 8 11.2 7.5 8 11.2 7.5 0.0 Malaysia 112 83.7 8 18.0 6.2 9 19.0 6.2 0.0 Vietnam 121 81.8 9 24.0 4.6 9 24.0 4.6 0.0 China 127 81.0 9 28.9 0.7 9 28.9 0.7 0.0 Timor-Leste 145 77.1 4 9.0 0.5 4 9.0 0.5 260.1 Myanmar 146 77.1 11 13.0 40.4 11 13.0 40.4 0.0 Indonesia 151 76.4 11.2 24.9 19.4 11.2 24.9 19.4 0.0 India 155 74.3 12.9 26.0 13.8 12.9 26.0 13.8 0.0 Lao PDR 160 72.4 8 67.0 4.6 8 67.0 4.6 0.0 Philippines 171 68.9 16 28.0 15.8 16 28.0 15.8 3.1 Cambodia 180 54.9 9 99.0 57.2 9 99.0 57.2 22.5 Central African Republic 190 31.4 10 22.0 209.4 10 22.0 209.4 556.6 Starting a Business This topic measures the paid-in minimum capital requirement, number of procedures, time and cost for a small- to medium-sized limited liability company to start up and formally operate. To make the data comparable across 190 economies, Doing Business uses a standardized business that is 100% domestically owned, has start-up capital equivalent to 10 times income per capita, engages in general industrial or commercial activities and employs between 10 and 50 people one month after the commencement of operations, all of whom are domestic nationals. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2016. Starting a Business in South Korea South Korea is one of the easiest places to start a business. It only takes 4 days and a little bit of money. Note: (*) An economy s distance to frontier score is indicated on a scale from 0 to 100, where 0 represents the worst performance and 100 the frontier Source: Doing Business 2017 49
I d SUBSCRIPTION ORDER FORM Complete the steps below or do it online at www.chartingeconomy.com/order like to order the following package(s) ASIAPAC Australia 1H2017 USD 99 China 1H2017 USD 99 Hong Kong 1H2017 USD 99 India 1H2017 USD 99 New Zealand 1H2017 USD 99 South Korea 1H2017 USD 99 Taiwan 1H2017 USD 99 AUS & NZ 1H2017 USD 139 China HK Taiwan 1H2017 USD 189 AMERICA Argentina 1H2017 USD 99 Brazil 1H2017 USD 99 Canada 1H2017 USD 99 Chile 1H2017 USD 99 Mexico 1H2017 USD 99 Peru 1H2017 USD 99 United States 1H2017 USD 99 LATAM5 1H2017* USD 319 ASEAN Brunei 1H2017 USD 99 Cambodia 1H2017 USD 99 Indonesia 1H2017 USD 99 Laos 1H2017 USD 99 Malaysia 1H2017 USD 99 Myanmar 1H2017 USD 99 Philippines 1H2017 USD 99 Singapore 1H2017 USD 99 Thailand 1H2017 USD 99 Vietnam 1H2017 USD 99 CLMB 1H2017** USD 239 ASEAN6 1H2017*** USD 379 OTHERS Russia 1H2017 USD 99 South Africa 1H2017 USD 99 Turkey 1H2017 USD 99 United Kingdom 1H2017 USD 99 BRIC 1H2017**** USD 249 Please invoice me using the details below We accept credit card / Paypal / bank transfer. More details on the payment will be provided in the invoice. Scan Save 20% When order 2 or more individual-country reports Name : Company : Address : Country : Email : Signature : and return this form to distribution@chartingeconomy.com It s easier to fill this form online, go to www.chartingeconomy.com/order Note: (*) Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Peru; (**) Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Brunei (***) Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines and Vietnam; (****) Brazil, Russia, India and China Charting Economy Helping Executives Interpret Economic Numbers Managed by Chart Maker Co., Ltd. (registered no. 0135555002491) 19 Moo 11, Lamlukka rd., Lamlukka district, Pathumthani, Thailand 12150